ANB  THE 

INDIANS 


-1917 


1 


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.^V^^^ 


Columbia  (Hnitiet^ftp 

THE  LIBRARIES 


Bequest  of 

Frederic  Bancroft 

1860-1945 


GENERAL  LIBRARY 


THOMAS   WISTAR,  2d. 

A   MODERN   APOSTLE  TO  THE   INDIANS.      CALLED   BY  THEM 
WITH-A-TEAR-IN-HIS-EYE.  "      SEE    P.    164,    NOTE. 


THE-MAN- 


FRIENDS  AND  THE  INDIANS 

1655  - 1917 


BY 


RAYNER  WICKERSHAM  KELSEY,  Ph.D. 

Associate  Professor  of  History  in  Haverford  College 
Author  of  "The  United  States  Consulate  in  California" 


"  The  proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Friends  are  no  doubt  pre- 
served as  a  part  of  history  for  future  generations.  If  the  Indian 
finds  this  history  his  heart  will  throb  with  gratitude  when  he  learns 
that  the  Society  of  Friends  has  stood  by  the  Red  Man  of  the  forest 
in  all  times  of  difficulty  and  trouble,  to  advise  and  assist  him." 

— A  Seneca  Indian 


PUBLISHED  BY 

The  Associated  Executive  Committee 
OF  Friends  on  Indian  Affairs 

PHII  ADELPIIIA 

1917 


PRESS   OF 

The  new  Era  printing  compant 
Lancaster.  Pa. 


Copyright,  191 7.  by 
Rayner  Wickersham  Kelsey 


TO 

THE   MEMORY  OF 

SARAH    ATWATER    KELSEY 

MY  MOTHER 


PREFACE 

This  little  volume  is  presented  with  the  misgivings 
that  always  come  when  one  arises  from  a  literary  task 
that  has  involved  merciless  condensation.  To  those 
who  find  some  parts  of  the  following  account  too  brief 
for  their  purposes  I  may  say  that  in  preparing  it  my 
surprise  at  finding  the  subject  so  widely  ramified  in 
time  and  space  has  been  equalled  only  by  my  difficulty 
in  compressing  it  into  the  confines  of  so  small  a  book. 

Some  of  the  subject  matter,  especially  for  the  earlier 
period,  has  been  largely  and  fairly  dealt  with  by  other 
writers.  In  such  cases  I  have  made  use  of  reliable 
secondary  accounts,  although  I  think  not  in  any  case 
without  careful  consideration  of  the  chief  source  ma- 
terials upon  which  the  account  rested.  For  the  period 
from  1795  to  the  present  time  much  of  the  story  has 
not  been  told  before  in  connected  form  and  I  have 
drawn  it  almost  entirely  from  the  manuscript  or 
printed  sources. 

The  materials  used  are  indicated  in  footnotes  and 
occasional  bibliographical  notes.  The  attention  of 
those  interested  in  religious  history  is  directed  espe- 
cially to  the  General  Note  on  Bibliography  at  the  close 
of  the  volume  which  may  be  of  some  service  as  a  guide 
to  the  location  of  Quaker  records. 

For  advice  or  active  help  in  this  study  I  wish  to 
thank  Edward  M.  Wistar,  Isaac  Sharpless,  Amelia 
Mott  Gummere,  Jonathan  M.  Steere  and  Florence 
Trueblood    Steere,    Mary    S.    Kimber,    Albert    Cook 


VI  PREFACE. 

Myers,  my  brother  W.  Irving  Kelsey,  and  my  former 
students  George  Montgomery  and  Harrison  H.  Arnold. 
My  especial  thanks  are  due  to  Norman  Penney, 
London,  England,  for  his  interest  in  my  labors  and  his 
valuable  help  in  supplying  notes  from  materials  in  the 
Friends'  Library,  Devonshire  House,  London. 

As  ever,  my  greatest  obligation  is  to  my  wife  for 
encouragement  and  active  help  at  every  stage  of  the 
work. 

Rayner  W.  Kelsey. 
Haverford,  Pennsylvania, 
September,  1917. 


CONTENTS. 

Preface  v-vi. 

Chapter  I.    The  Indians,  the  Government,  and 

THE  Church. 

Indian  population  and  distribution,  1-3.  The  government  and 
the  Indians,  3-7.  Christian  missions,  7-14.  The  place  of  Friends 
in  the  Indian  work,  14-15.     Bibliographical  note,  15-18. 

Chapter  II.     Preaching. 

George  Fox  and  the  Indians,  19-23.  Josiah  Coale,  Thomas 
Thurston,  John  Taylor,  23-24.  William  Penn,  24-26.  Various 
early  Friends,  26-29.  John  Woolman,  29-32.  Later  efforts,  32- 
37.     Bibliographical  note,  37. 

Chapter  III.     Practice. 

The  Quaker  policy  idealized  and  criticized,  38-40.  Kindly 
relations  early  established,  40-43.  Purchasing  Indian  lands,  43- 
53.  Protecting  the  Indian  from  liquor  dealers  and  unscrupulous 
traders,  53-55.  Civil  disputes,  Indian  slavery,  miscellaneous,  55- 
59.     Bibliographical  note,  59. 

Chapter  IV.    The  Quaker  Peace. 

In  New  Jersey  and  New  England,  60-62.  Pennsylvania,  62-70. 
North  Carolina,  70-72.  Preservation  of  Friends  from  Indian 
depredations,  72-y7.  Conclusion,  77-79.  The  historians  Park- 
man,  Fiske  and  Hanna  on  the  Quaker  policy,  79-83.  Bibliograph- 
ical note,  83-88. 

Chapter  V.     Tunesassa. 

Reawakened  interest,  1 793-1 795,  89-92.  Appointment  and  early 
work  of  the  Committee,  92-94.  Work  among  the  Oneidas,  94-96. 
At  Cornplanter's  and  Old  Town,  96-97.  Work  established  at 
Tunesassa,  97-98.  Joseph  Elkinton,  Robert  Scotton,  Ebenezer 
Worth,  98-99.  Boarding  School  established,  99-100.  Indian 
progress,  100-104.  Help  for  Cattaraugus,  104-105.  Miscellaneous 
activities,  105-106.  Recent  progress  and  problems,  106-108. 
Conclusion,  108-109.     Bibliographical  note,  no. 

▼il 


Vm  CONTENTS 

Chapter  VI.     Further  Work  in  the  East. 

Work  of  New  England  Yearly  Meeting,  111-114.  New  York 
Yearly  Meeting,  114-117.  Liberal  Friends  at  Onondaga  and 
Cattaraugus,  118-119.  The  Senecas  and  the  Ogden  Land  Com- 
pany, 11 9-1 25.  Aid  for  Indian  women,  125-127.  Indian  progress, 
127-129.     Close  of  the  work,  129-131.     Bibliographical  note,  131. 

Chapter  VII.    Work  Established  in  the  West. 

Early  efforts  of  Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting,  132-134.  Work 
near  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana,  134-137.  Mission  at  Wapakoneta, 
Ohio,  137-140.  Removal  of  Shawnees  to  Kansas  and  establish- 
ment of  mission  school  for  them  near  Kansas  City,  140-145. 
Aid  from  various  Yearly  Meetings,  145-147.  Journey  of  John 
D.  Lang  and  Samuel  Taylor,  Jr.,  147-150.  The  Shawnee  mission 
in  1850,  150-151.  Later  years  to  close  of  mission  in  1869,  151- 
159.     Bibliographical  note,  159-161. 

Chapter  VIII.     Grant's  Peace  Policy. 

Indian  wars  and  Friendly  activities,  162-164.  Genesis  of 
Grant's  Policy,  164-170.  Central  Superintendency  under  Ortho- 
dox Friends,  170.  The  field  of  service  and  the  preparations  to 
enter  it:  origin  of  Associated  Executive  Committee,  170-173. 
Pacifying  the  wilder  tribes,  173—174.  Eastern  Friends  visit  the 
field,  174-175.  Duties  of  Indian  Agents,  175-176.  Activities 
and  developments,  176-182.  Religious  efforts,  182-184.  Close 
of  the  work  of  Orthodox  Friends,  184-187,  Northern  Superin- 
tendency under  Liberal  Friends,  187.  Condition  of  various  tribes, 
187-190.  Eastern  Friends  visit  the  field,  190-191.  Activities  and 
developments,  191-194.  Progress  of  the  Indians,  194-195.  Close 
of  the  work  of  Liberal  Friends:  summary  of  results,  196-198. 
Conclusion,  198-199.     Bibliographical  note,  199-200. 

Chapter  IX.    The  Oklahoma  Missions. 

Scope  and  origin,  201-204.  Distribution  of  early  efforts,  204- 
206.  Experiences  among  the  Indians,  206-208.  The  Modocs, 
208-210.  Status  and  methods  in  1885,  210-21 1.  Administration 
of  Charles  W.  Kirk,  211-219.  Administration  of  George  N. 
Hartley,  220-225.  Administration  of  William  P.  Haworth,  225- 
229.  Recent  developments  and  problems,  229-232.  Bibliograph- 
ical note,  232-233, 


CONTENTS  IX 


Chapter  X.    Many  Works  in  Many  Fields. 

White's  Institutes,  Indiana  and  Iowa,  234-241.  The  Eastern 
Cherokees,  North  Carolina,  241-245.  Southeastern  Alaska,  245- 
253.  Northern  Alaska,  253-256.  Various  activities,  257-259. 
English  Friends  and  the  Indian  work,  260-261.  General  conclu- 
sion, 261-263.     Bibliographical  note,  263. 


General  Bibliographical  Note,  264-266. 
Index,  267-291. 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Thomas  Wistar,  2d Frontispiece 

William  Savery    facing 

Tunesassa  Boarding  School 

Philip  E.  Thomas 

John  D.  Lang 

Scar-faced  Charley   

Lucy  Winney   

Birdie  Spoon  and  Family 

Modoc  Meeting-House  


90 
100 
124 
148 
210 
216 
224 
228 


XI 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  INDIANS,  THE  GOVERNMENT  AND  THE  CHURCH. 

The  history  of  the  American  Indians  is  a  tragic 
drama  of  mighty  proportions  and  fast  changing  scenes. 
No  part  of  it  can  be  comprehended  without  some  un- 
derstanding of  the  whole.  The  work  of  Friends  for 
the  American  Indians  north  of  Mexico  is  a  Httle  but 
a  worthy  part  of  the  story,  better  told  after  the  whole 
has  been  sketched  in  outline. 

In  the  territory  to-day  comprehended  by  the  United 
States,  Canada,  Greenland,  and  Alaska,  there  were, 
according  to  careful  estimates,  about  1,150,000  Indians 
when  the  white  men  came  to  these  shores  at  the  close 
of  the  fifteenth  century.  Now  there  are  about  403,000. 
The  difference  represents  a  decrease  of  sixty-five  per 
cent.  Of  the  earlier  number  there  were  perhaps  about 
846,000  within  the  present  bounds  of  the  United  States 
proper,  exclusive  of  Alaska,  as  against  265,683  in 
1910,  the  number  having  increased  slowly  in  recent 
decades. 

The  territorial  possessions  of  the  Indians  within  the 
United  States  proper  show  even  more  striking  changes. 
The  whole  imperial  domain,  although  never  actually 
occupied  by  them  in  its  entirety,  was  at  the  first  poten- 
tially theirs.  To-day  their  broken  tribes  can  claim  but 
52,013,010  acres,  distributed  in  161  reservations,  scat- 
tered in  more  than  a  score  of  states.  On  a  map  of  the 
United  States  showing  the  original  distribution  of  the 

1 


2  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Indian  linguistic  families,  the  great  Algonquian,  Iro- 
quoian,  Muskhogean,  Siouan,  and  Shoshonean  branches 
occupy  vast  tracts,  each  equal  to  many  states.  To-day 
the  lands  of  any  of  these  show  as  a  dot  or  strip  within 
a  single  commonwealth. 

The  story  of  such  change  in  the  fortunes  of  a  once 
free  and  haughty  race  is  sad  at  the  best,  while  at  the 
worst  it  is  not  wholly  darkened  with  loss  nor  unlight- 
ened  by  deeds  of  honorable  statecraft  and  Christian 
charity. 

The  chief  causes  for  the  decrease  in  numbers  are 
traceable  to  the  white  man,  though  some  of  them  were 
wrought  unwittingly.  Small-pox,  fever,  tuberculosis, 
sexual  diseases,  drunkenness,  starvation,  and  war, — 
these  make  up  the  category,  almost  all  of  them  intro- 
duced and  the  remaining  ones  aggravated  by  the  com- 
ing of  the  whites. 

Terrible  small-pox  epidemics  in  the  eighteenth  and 
early  nineteenth  centuries  reduced  the  northern  Plains 
tribes  by  about  one  half.  Fever  ravages  wrought  sim- 
ilar destruction  in  California  and  nearly  exterminated 
the  Chinookan  stock  in  the  Northwest.  There  was 
almost  constant  warfare  among  the  Indian  tribes 
before  the  white  men  came,  but  the  introduction  of 
fire-arms  increased  the  work  of  destruction.  In  the 
early  New  England  wars  (the  Pequot  War  of  1637, 
and  King  Philip's  War  of  1675-1676)  whole  tribes 
were  practically  exterminated,  and  similar  destruction 
was  at  times  wrought  in  the  south  and  west.  The 
ravages  of  fever  in  California  have  been  mentioned, 
yet  the  appalling  decrease  of  the  Indian  population 
there,  from  250,000  to  less  than  17,000,  must  be  as- 
signed largely  to  dissipation  introduced  by  the  whites 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT   AND   CHURCH.  3 

End  to  the  wholesale  murder  and  massacre  carried  on 
by  the  miners  and  early  settlers.  Similarly  the  Aleu- 
tian branch  of  the  Eskimauan  family  in  Alaska  was 
almost  exterminated  by  the  early  Russian  intruders. 
Frenchman  in  the  north  and  Spaniard  in  the  south 
wrote  each  his  chapter  in  the  story  of  destruction.  So 
the  white  man  ruled  and  the  Indian  died. 

It  was  inevitable  that  the  vast  area  of  America 
should  cease  to  be  occupied  by  a  scattered  people  in 
the  roving,  hunter  stage  of  life.  It  was  indeed  of  the 
greatest  importance  that  the  Indians  should  be  led  into 
the  higher  stages  of  life,  wherein  the  earth,  intensively 
cultivated  by  settled  communities,  could  support  thou- 
sands in  the  place  of  hundreds.  So  arose  the  neces- 
sity for  the  extinction  of  Indian  land  claims  and  the 
compression  of  the  tribes  within  narrower  limits.  The 
tragedy  of  the  transaction  lies  in  the  stupidity  and 
selfishness  with  which  the  work  was  often  done  by  the 
representatives  of  Christian  nations. 

The  early  land  policy  of  Great  Britain,  France, 
Spain  and  other  nations  that  occupied  land  in  the  new 
world  was  essentially  the  same.  They  assumed  that 
discovery  and  exploration  gave  them  the  right  of 
ownership  to  distant,  heathen  lands.  The  earliest  Eng- 
lish charters,  in  the  late  sixteenth  and  early  seven- 
teenth centuries,  make  no  mention  of  the  rights  of 
natives  to  the  soil.  However,  it  soon  came  to  be  the 
general  policy  of  governors  and  colonists  who  came 
to  America  to  make  some  bargain  with  the  Indians  for 
their  land.  They  had  to  deal  with  the  practical  prob- 
lem of  getting  along  with  the  natives,  and  wisdom  as 
well  as  justice  dictated  an  amicable  policy  where  pos- 
sible. 


4  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

Roger  \\'illiams,  when  he  first  came  to  New  Eng- 
land, addressed  an  argument  to  the  governor  and  coun- 
cil of  Plymouth  in  which  he  asserted  that  any  just 
title  to  the  land  of  the  new  world  must  be  acquired 
from  the  Indians  and  not  from  the  grant  of  the  crown. 
Following  this  principle,  from  a  sense  of  justice  or  ex- 
pediency, the  English  colonists  or  proprietors,  espe- 
cially in  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  New  York,  and 
New  England,  sought  as  a  rule  to  acquire  their  land 
by  purchase  from  the  Indians.  From  this  practice  of 
the  colonists  the  home  governments  of  the  various 
countries  came  to  pay  more  regard  to  Indian  titles  in 
the  later  period.  Yet  the  method  of  making  purchases, 
by  defrauding  the  Indians  as  to  price  or  establishing 
fraudulent  boundaries,  often  tells  a  shameful  story. 
Indeed  it  was  in  the  method  and  spirit  of  such  deal- 
ings, rather  than  in  the  mere  fact  of  purchase,  that  the 
vast  difference  lies  in  the  history  of  various  colonies. 

Based  upon  the  experience  of  the  colonial  period 
the  United  States  inaugurated  a  policy  that  was  de- 
signed to  secure  justice  for  the  Indians.  When  the 
Ordinance  of  1787  was  passed  for  the  organization  of 
the  great  territory  north-west  of  the  Ohio  the  follow- 
ing clause  was  inserted :  "  The  utmost  good  faith  shall 
always  be  observ^ed  toward  the  Indians ;  their  land  and 
property  shall  never  be  taken  from  them  without  their 
consent."  This  statement  was  reenacted  in  17S9  under 
the  present  constitution  and  also  in  the  organizing  acts 
for  as  many  as  sixteen  states  and  territories.  Such  a 
statement  undoubtedly  represents  the  best  attitude  of 
the  people  of  the  United  States  and  the  government. 
Yet  designing  white  settlers  and  venal  government 
officers  have  all  too  often  combined  to  defeat  such  a 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT   AND   CHURCH.  5 

benign  purpose.  So  the  Indians  have  been  ejected 
from  their  favorite  sections  and  in  some  cases  located 
upon  arid  or  semi-arid  reservations.  This  latter  crime 
has  not  only  entailed  immediate  misery  and  death,  but 
has  helped  to  defeat  the  ultimate  purpose  of  changing 
the  Indian  from  the  hunting  to  the  agricultural  stage 
of  civilization. 

One  of  the  most  important  features  of  government 
policy  has  been  the  reservation  plan.  This  plan  was 
followed  in  Canada  by  both  French  and  English,  and 
was  also  tried  somewhat  by  the  colonies  before  the 
Revolution.  It  was  inaugurated  by  the  United  States 
as  early  as  1786  and  is  best  exemplified  perhaps  by  the 
striking  experiment  of  removing  the  Eastern  Indians 
to  the  territory  west  of  the  Mississippi  River.  This 
latter  plan  was  broached  as  early  as  1804  and  was 
thoroughly  outlined  by  President  Monroe  in  a  report 
to  the  Senate  in  1825.  In  carrying  out  this  plan  the 
present  Oklahoma  and  much  of  what  is  now  Kansas 
were  constituted  the  "  Indian  Territory."  To  this 
Territory  by  the  close  of  1840  most  of  the  great 
Eastern  tribes  had  been  removed.  Later  the  Kansas 
portion  of  the  grant  was  detached  and  most  of  the 
tribes  within  that  portion  were  removed  to  the  part 
of  the  Territory  south  of  the  present  Kansas  line.  The 
nucleus  of  the  present  state  of  Oklahoma  was  an  un- 
occupied tract  near  the  center  of  the  Indian  Territory 
which  was  opened  to  white  settlers  in  1889.  The  next 
year  the  whole  western  part  of  the  Indian  Territory 
was  erected  into  the  territory  of  Oklahoma,  and  when 
this  territory  became  a  state  in  1907  the  whole  of  the 
remaining  Indian  Territory  was  included  within  its 
borders. 


6  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

There  are  also  large  reservations  in  Arizona  and 
South  Dakota  while  smaller  ones  in  other  states  bring 
the  total  number  up  to  i6i  reservations. 

The  most  important  act  of  recent  years  with  regard 
to  Indian  land  tenure  is  the  severalty  act  of  1887. 
"  This  act  provided  for  the  allotment  to  each  man, 
woman,  and  child  of  a  certain  portion  of  the  tribal 
land  and  the  issuance  of  a  patent  by  which  the  United 
States  holds  the  allotment  in  trust,  free  of  taxation 
and  encumbrance,  for  25  years,  when  the  allottee  is 
entitled  to  a  patent  in  fee  simple.  On  the  approval  of 
their  allotments  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  the 
Indians  become  citizens  of  the  United  States  and  sub- 
ject to  its  laws." 

By  the  close  of  191 5  there  had  been  made  115,949 
allotments  involving  a  total  of  19,398,927  acres  of 
land.  Under  an  Act  of  1906  and  certain  subsequent 
acts  for  granting  patents  in  fee,  there  have  been 
granted  9,894  patents  in  fee,  covering  1,114,878  acres 
of  land. 

In  a  "  Declaration  of  Policy  "  under  date  of  April 
17,  191 7,  Cato  Sells,  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs, 
said: 

"Broadly  speaking,  a  policy  of  greater  liberalism 
will  henceforth  prevail  in  Indian  administration  to  the 
end  that  every  Indian,  as  soon  as  he  has  been  deter- 
mined to  be  as  competent  to  transact  his  business  as 
the  average  white  man,  shall  be  given  full  control  of 
his  property  and  have  all  his  lands  and  moneys  turned 
over  to  him,  after  which  he  will  no  longer  be  a  ward 
of  the  Government.  .  .  .  This  is  a  new  and  far-reach- 
ing declaration  of  policy.  It  means  the  dawn  of  a  new 
era  in  Indian  administration.    It  means  that  the  com- 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  7 

petent  Indian  will  no  longer  be  treated  as  half  ward 
and  half  citizen.  It  means  reduced  appropriations  by 
the  Government  and  more  self-respect  and  independ- 
ence for  the  Indian.  It  means  the  ultimate  absorption 
of  the  Indian  race  into  the  body  politic  of  the  Nation. 
It  means,  in  short,  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  the  In- 
dian problem." 

So  winds  the  path  by  which  the  American  Indian 
has  come  from  his  primitive,  roving  life,  in  possession 
of  a  mighty  continent,  to  a  guarded  tribal  existence  on 
government  reservations,  and  thence  to  the  rights  and 
privileges,  the  restrictions  and  responsibilities  of  pri- 
vate land-holding  and  citizenship.  And  the  path  has 
been  more  rugged  than  ever  foot-sore  Indian  followed 
in  his  native  forest. 

The  brighter  colors  of  the  picture  show  chiefly  in 
the  efforts  of  the  government,  the  churches,  and  various 
voluntary  organizations,  to  educate  and  uplift  the 
Indian. 

Every  nation  having  New  World  colonies  showed 
at  some  time  in  some  way  a  feeling  of  its  responsibility 
for  the  Indian.  Many  of  the  earliest  charters  con- 
tained clauses  calling  for  the  civilization  and  Chris- 
tianization  of  the  natives.  The  Russians  founded  In- 
dian schools  in  Alaska,  the  Spanish  government  co- 
operated in  maintaining  the  great  mission  establish- 
ments, the  French  government  at  one  time  tried  to  pro- 
hibit the  sale  of  liquor  to  the  Indians,  and  at  least 
two  persons  were  driven  out  of  the  Dutch  colony  of 
New  Amsterdam  for  supplying  the  natives  with  in- 
toxicants. Many  of  the  English  colonies  tried  at 
various  times  to  prevent  the  sale  of  liquor  and  fire- 
arms to  the  Indians  and  to  secure  justice  to  the  natives 


8  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

in  their  general  trading  relations  with  the  whites.  Such 
attempts  were  usually  sporadic  and  often  ineffectual, 
but  the  difficulty  of  circumventing  the  greed  of  white 
traders  was  great  and  it  is  cheering  to  know  at  least 
that  some  attempt  was  made. 

The  obligation  to  educate  the  Indian  was  early  recog- 
nized. Harvard,  Dartmouth,  and  the  College  of  Wil- 
liam and  Mary  were  founded  with  the  purpose  wholly 
or  partially  in  view  of  educating  Indian  youth,  al- 
though their  graduates  of  Indian  blood  have  been  very 
few.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution  the  Con- 
tinental Congress  appointed  a  committee  on  Indian 
affairs  and  shortly  thereafter  money  was  voted  to  sup- 
port Indian  students  at  Dartmouth  and  Princeton  col- 
leges. 

In  1 819  the  United  States  made  its  first  general  ap- 
propriation, of  ten  thousand  dollars,  for  Indian  edu- 
cation, but  until  1873  most  of  the  government  funds 
for  this  purpose  were  expended  in  cooperation  with 
the  mission  schools  of  various  denominations.  Since 
1873  government  schools  proper  have  been  established, 
and  aid  has  been  gradually  withdrawn,  especially  since 
1900,  from  schools  under  the  care  of  religious  societies. 
The  Canadian  government  to-day  maintains  a  splendid 
system  of  industrial,  boarding  and  day-schools. 

The  United  States  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs 
in  1916  reported  162  boarding  and  238  day  schools 
with  an  average  attendance  of  20,083  ^^^  5j220,  re- 
spectively. With  nearly  30,000  in  the  public  schools 
of  various  states,  and  about  5,000  in  mission  and 
private  schools,  there  were  altogether  61,243  Indian 
children  attending  school  in  1916. 

The  annual  appropriation  by  Congress  for  Indian 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  9 

schools  has  increased  from  $20,000  in  1877  to  $4,- 
701,905  in  1917. 

The  record  of  the  white  man's  deahng  with  the  In- 
dian would  be  fairer  if  this  obligation  had  been  more 
adequately  met  at  an  earlier  period.  Yet  the  best 
spirit  of  the  American  nation  is  no  doubt  manifest  in 
the  official  declaration  made  in  1792  to  some  Indians 
near  Lake  Erie:  "That  the  United  States  are  highly 
desirous  of  imparting  to  all  the  Indian  tribes  the  bless- 
ings of  civilization,  as  the  only  means  of  perpetuating 
them  on  the  earth ;  that  we  are  willing  to  be  at  the  ex- 
pense of  teaching  them  to  read  and  write,  to  plow  and 
to  sow  in  order  to  raise  their  own  bread  and  meat 
with  certainty  as  the  white  people  do." 

The  work  of  Christian  missions  and  missionaries 
for  the  civilization  and  Christianization  of  the  In- 
dians writes  the  truly  heroic  part  of  the  whole  story. 
With  Spain  and  France  this  work  was  from  the  first 
a  governmental  concern  and  "  the  missionary  was  fre- 
quently the  pioneer  explorer  and  diplomatic  ambas- 
sador." With  the  English  the  spiritual  welfare  of 
the  natives  was  more  largely  left  to  the  zeal  of  indi- 
viduals or  of  religious  societies. 

As  to  priority  of  missionary  work  among  the  In- 
dians a  competent  authority  makes  the  following  state- 
ment :  "  First  in  chronologic  order,  historic  importance, 
number  of  estabhshments,  and  population  come  the 
Catholic  missions,  conducted  in  the  earlier  period 
chiefly  by  Jesuits  among  the  French  and  by  Francis- 
cans among  the  Spanish  colonies."  As  the  intrepid 
old  sea-captains  and  explorers  of  Castile  were  first 
to  sail  the  western  seas  and  open  paths  through  the 
newly  found  lands,  so  were  her  spiritual  pioneers  in 


10  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

the  van  of  conquest  in  carrying  the  message  of  the 
cross  to  the  savage  races.  The  first  missionaries  to 
labor  within  the  present  bounds  of  the  United  States 
were  the  Spanish  Franciscan  Fathers,  Padilla,  Juan 
de  la  Cruz,  and  Descalona,  who  marched  from  Mexico 
with  Coronado  into  the  great  southwest  of  this  coun- 
try only  fifty  years  after  Columbus  landed  on  San 
Salvador.  Three  years  later  (1545)  Father  Olmos 
began  a  work  among  the  tribes  of  Texas.  Thus  the 
dark  chapter  of  cruelty  practiced  by  Spanish  soldiers 
and  explorers  was  lightened  by  the  heroic  deeds  of 
the  mission  fathers,  almost  a  century  before  the  Prot- 
estant work  for  the  natives  began  in  New  England 
under  Williams,  Mayhew,  and  EHot. 

The  story  of  the  Spanish  missionaries  and  missions 
in  Texas,  New  Mexico,  Arizona,  California,  and 
Florida  is  well  matched  by  that  of  the  French  Fathers 
laboring  along  the  vast  reaches  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 
the  Great  Lakes,  and  down  through  the  Illinois  coun- 
try to  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  Even  as  the  early 
apostles  these  men  counted  not  their  lives  dear.  The 
Dominican,  Louis  Cancer,  was  murdered  by  the  Flor- 
ida Indians ;  three  Franciscans  gave  their  lives  at  one 
time  among  the  Texas  tribes ;  seven  Spanish  Jesuits 
were  massacred  about  1570  in  the  vicinity  of  the  James 
River  in  Virginia.  The  heroic  French  Jesuit,  Father 
Jogues,  died  a  martyr's  death  among  the  Mohawks  of 
New  York,  Father  Rale  died  at  his  post  in  Maine, 
while  Father  Brebeuf  and  Father  Lalement,  laboring 
among  the  Hurons,  suffered  horrible  tortures  and 
final  death  at  the  hands  of  invading  Iroquois.  These 
are  a  few  cases  of  many  that  could  be  cited  of  the  early 
Catholic  missionaries  who  enacted  deeds  as  heroic  as 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  11 

are  recorded  anywhere  in  the  annals  of  the  Christian 
church. 

The  first  and  some  of  the  finest  Protestant  mission- 
ary efforts  among  the  Indians  were  begun  by  the  Con- 
gregationaHsts  in  New  England.  When  Roger  Wil- 
liams (later  a  Baptist)  fled  from  the  authorities  of 
Massachusetts  early  in  1636  and  found  a  refuge  from 
wintry  storms  among  the  friendly  Wampanoags  and 
Narragansetts  southwest  of  Plymouth,  the  Protestant 
effort  to  carry  the  Gospel  to  the  natives  may  be  said 
to  have  fairly  begun.  Seven  years  later  Thomas  May- 
hew,  Jr.,  began  his  famous  work  among  the  Indians  of 
Martha's  Vineyard,  a  work  continued  for  four  gen- 
erations by  the  same  family.  This  work  was  so  suc- 
cessful that  the  Indians  of  the  island,  although  they 
outnumbered  the  whites  ten  to  one,  remained  friendly 
during  the  terrible  years  of  King  Philip's  War,  1675- 
1676. 

Near  Boston,  among  some  Massachusetts  Indians, 
John  Eliot  began  his  remarkable  work  in  1646.  Owing 
to  the  success  of  EHot  and  Mayhew  there  was  formed 
in  England  the  "  Corporation  for  the  Propagation  of 
the  Gospel  among  the  Indians  in  New  England,"  and 
this  body  continued  for  more  than  a  century  to  aid  in 
the  mission  work.  In  1674  there  were  14  villages  con- 
taining over  1,000  "praying  Indians"  as  a  result  of 
the  labors  of  Eliot  and  his  friend,  Samuel  Danforth. 
About  the  same  time  the  Christian  Indians  of  south- 
eastern Massachusetts,  including  Nantucket  and 
Martha's  Vineyard,  under  John  Cotton  and  Richard 
Bourne,  numbered  about  2,500.  Most  of  the  main- 
land towns  of  "  praying  Indians  "  were  broken  up  by 
King    Philip's    War,    1 675-1 676,    but    Eliot    labored 


12  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

among  the  remaining  ones  until  his  death  in  1690  at 
the  advanced  age  of  86  years.  A  permanent  monu- 
ment to  his  memory  was  his  translation  of  the  Bible 
into  the  Natick  tongue. 

The  famous  missionary  effort  with  the  Stockbridge 
Indians  followed  the  tribes  as  they  were  pushed  west- 
ward by  the  advance  of  white  population.  Gradually 
the  work  in  New  England  dwindled  as  the  Indians 
became  fewer  and  more  scattered,  and  it  was  con- 
tinued in  a  small  way  in  the  nineteenth  century  only 
by  the  aid  of  government  appropriations. 

The  splendid  work  of  the  Congregationalists  has 
been  referred  to  at  some  length  because  it  was  the  be- 
ginning and  fairly  typical  of  the  work  of  Protestant 
denominations.  The  efforts  of  other  denominations, 
the  spread  of  the  work  among  the  various  colonies  of 
the  Atlantic  seaboard,  the  missionary  invasion  of  the 
territory  between  the  Allegheny  Mountains  and  the 
Mississippi  River,  cannot  be  followed  in  this  treatise. 
One  great  fact  should,  however,  be  borne  in  the  mind 
of  the  reader.  That  is,  the  fact  of  the  removal  of  the 
Indian  tribes,  especially  those  of  the  eastern  states, 
and  their  consolidation  west  of  the  Mississippi  in  the 
Indian  Territory.  This  was  accomplished  largely  in 
the  decade  between  1830  and  1840,  and  in  the  history 
of  Indian  missions  this  event  marks  a  great  crisis.  Old 
mission  establishments  were  broken  up ;  some  followed 
the  tribes  in  their  migration,  and  many  new  ones  were 
set  up  in  the  western  territory. 

The  following  statistics,  for  the  year  1914,  give 
some  idea  of  the  missionary  effort  now  maintained 
among  the  Indians  by  several  of  the  Christian  denom- 
inations : 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  13 

Missions   Missionaries       Church  Mis- 

and  and  Members         sion 

Denomination.  Churches.      Helpers.  Native.    Schools. 

Baptist,   Northern    123  127  5408  5 

Congregational    34  26  1331  4 

Friends 10  22  550  i 

Mennonite    17  18  250 

Methodist  Episcopal    92  57  2500  6 

Methodist   Episcopal,    South no  37  2875 

Moravian    36  20  875 

Presbyterian,  Northern 249  194  §955  i3 

Presbyterian,  Southern 20  12  500  i 

Protestant  Episcopal   127  170  6982  18 

Reformed  Church  in  America..    13  22  1500 

Roman  Catholic   238  610  63,000  63 

The  story  of  these  missions  and  those  of  the  earlier 
period  is  eloquent  of  a  long  succession  of  as  heroic 
deeds  as  could  be  mustered  from  the  history  of  any 
country  in  any  age.  To  be  sure,  many  of  the  missions 
that  were  established  came  to  a  speedy  end.  Some  of 
them,  on  the  other  hand,  continued  long  in  the  field 
but  seemed  to  work  little  permanent  change  in  the  life 
of  the  Indian.  Some  historians  have  written  much 
of  the  apparent  failure  of  certain  Indian  missions,  and 
little  of  others  that  showed  immediate  and  permanent 
success.  A  mature  judgment  on  this  question  is  ex- 
pressed by  Mr.  James  Mooney,  of  the  Bureau  of 
American  Ethnology : 

"  In  the  four  centuries  of  American  history  there  is 
no  more  inspiring  chapter  of  heroism,  self-sacrifice, 
and  devotion  to  high  ideals  than  that  offered  by  the 
Indian  missions.  Some  of  the  missionaries  were  of 
noble  blood  and  had  renounced  titles  and  estates  to 
engage  in  the  work;  most  of  them  were  of  finished 
scholarship  and  refined  habit,  and  nearly  all  were  of 
such  exceptional  ability  as  to  have  commanded  atten- 
tion in  any  community  and  to  have  possessed  them- 


14  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

selves  of  wealth  and  reputation,  had  they  so  chosen ; 
yet  they  deliberately  faced  poverty  and  sufferings,  exile 
and  oblivion,  ingratitude,  torture,  and  death  itself  in 
the  hope  that  some  portion  of  the  darkened  world 
might  be  made  better  through  their  effort.  To  the  stu- 
dent who  knows  what  infinite  forms  of  cruelty,  bru- 
tishness,  and  filthiness  belonged  to  savagery,  from 
Florida  to  Alaska,  it  is  beyond  question  that,  in  spite 
of  sectarian  limitations  and  shortcomings  of  indi- 
viduals, the  missionaries  have  fought  a  good  fight. 
Where  they  have  failed  to  accomplish  large  results  the 
reason  lies  in  the  irrepressible  selfishness  of  the  white 
man,  or  in  the  innate  incompetence  and  unworthiness 
of  the  people  for  whom  they  labored." 

It  is  a  task  of  the  slow  centuries  to  undo  the  work 
of  ages  and  re-make  the  savage  children  of  the  forest. 
Some  will  always  scoff  as  the  hard  task  drags  and 
clogs  along  its  way.  Others  will  toil  and  faint  not. 
And  when  the  story  of  saving  the  American  Indian  is 
at  last  told  in  history,  the  highest  place  in  the  great 
honor  roll  will  go,  even  as  in  the  saving  of  our  Anglo- 
Saxon  ancestors  from  savagery,  to  the  Christian  mis- 
sionaries and  missions. 

In  the  light  of  the  foregoing  sketch  of  Indian  his- 
tory and  Indian  missions,  the  work  of  the  Society  of 
Friends  may  be  seen  against  a  proper  background. 

Until  about  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  the 
efforts  of  Friends  for  the  Indians  were  confined  to 
the  following  points :  The  development  of  kindly  rela- 
tions with  the  Indians,  protecting  them  from  the  vices 
and  injustice  of  the  white  men,  and  the  preaching  of 
the  Gospel  to  them  by  Friends  who  felt  called  to  do 
so  by  an  individual  "concern."     It  was  perhaps  the 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  15 

feeling  cherished  by  Friends  that  everything  in  the 
nature  of  rehgious  effort  should  be  the  result  of  indi- 
vidual leading  that  postponed  to  so  late  a  date  the  cor- 
porate efforts  of  various  yearly  meetings  along  mis- 
sion Hnes. 

About  1795  the  corporate  phase  of  Friends'  efforts 
for  the  Indians  began,  and  from  that  time  forward 
various  yearly  meetings  have  fostered  worthy  mission- 
ary efforts,  in  which  the  teaching  of  useful  industrial 
arts  has  had  a  large  place. 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  part  taken  by  Friends 
in  the  Indian  work  was  the  leading  part  assigned  to 
them  by  President  Grant  in  carrying  out  his  famous 
peace  policy,  beginning  in  1869.  From  this  time  dates 
the  work  of  the  Associated  Executive  Committee  of 
Friends  on  Indian  Affairs. 

A  final  phase,  worthy  of  consideration,  is  the  influ- 
ence and  labors  of  Friends  in  various  philanthropic 
organizations  devoted  to  the  welfare  of  the  Indians. 

To  a  description  of  these  various  lines  of  effort  the 
remaining  chapters  of  this  study  are  devoted. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   NOTE. 

At  convenient  division  points  in  this  study  will  be 
found  bibliographical  notes  referring  to  the  principal 
source  materials  or  secondary  works  used  by  the  author, 
and  to  other  works  that  may  be  of  value  to  readers  in 
carrying  on  further  reading  along  the  lines  treated  briefly 
in  this  text.  See  also  General  Note  on  Bibliography  at 
end  of  volume. 

Board    of    Indian     Commissioners,    Annual    Reports. 
Washington,  D.  C. 

Contain  valuable  material  on  special  problems  con- 
nected with  the  Indian  Service. 


16  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs,  Reports.  Published 
annually  by  the  United  States  Government. 

These  reports  are  the  great  store-house  of  informa- 
tion on  the  work  of  the  government  for  the  Indian. 

Dennis,  J.  S.,  and  others.  World  Atlas  of  Christian 
Missions.  Student  Volunteer  Movement.  New  York. 
1911. 

Contains    useful    maps    showing   location    of    Indian 
missions  in  the  United  States,  Canada,  and  Alaska. 

Eastman,  Charles  A.   (Ohiyesa).     The  Indian  Today. 
New  York.    191 5. 
A  discussion  of  the  Indian  problem  by  a  Sioux  Indian. 

Encyclopedia  articles.  There  is  a  splendid  brief  account 
of  the  American  Indians  in  the  New  International  En- 
cyclopedia, and  a  longer  one  in  the  nth  edition  of  the 
Britannica.  In  the  latter  is  an  especially  valuable  table 
in  which  each  Indian  tribe  and  linguistic  family  is 
given,  with  the  following  headings  of  information  after 
each:  Stock,  Situation,  Population,  Degree  of  Inter- 
mixture, Condition,  Progress,  Authorities  {i.  e.,  citation 
of  books  on  the  particular  tribe). 

Farrand,  Livingston.  Basis  of  American  History.  (Vol. 
I  of  American  Nation  series.)  Harper  and  Bros.  1904. 
The  larger  part  of  this  volume  deals  with  the  Amer- 
ican Indians,  their  history,  customs,  and  present  condi- 
tions. It  is  the  best  brief  narrative  treatise  and  is 
thoroughly  reliable. 

See  bibliography  at  close  of  volume  for  list  of  works 
on  American  Indians. 

Fletcher,  Alice  C.  Indian  Education  and  Civilisation. 
Government  Printing  Office.    1888. 

This  work  is  now  rather  old  but  it  contains  much  in- 
formation that  is  still  valuable  and  interesting. 

Hodge,  Frederick  Webb  (editor).  Handbook  of  Amer- 
ican Indians  North  of  Mexico.  2  vols.  Government 
Printing  Office.     1907-1910. 


INDIANS,   GOVERNMENT  AND   CHURCH.  17 

This  is  the  best  general  reference  work  now  avail- 
able and  everyone  interested  in  Indian  history  should 
have  it.  It  is  a  government  publication  and  can  some- 
times be  secured  gratis  through  a  Congressman. 

The  above  chapter  is  based  largely  on  information 
contained  in  these  volumes.  See  especially  the  articles 
on  Missions,  Education,  Governmental  Policy,  English 
Influence,  French  Influence,  Spanish  Influence,  etc. 

A  most  valuable  feature  of  these  volumes  is  the  cita- 
tion of  the  best  authorities  on  various  phases  of  Indian 
history,  given  at  the  close  of  the  more  important  arti- 
cles. 

See  the  fine  large  map  at  the  close  of  volume  I,  show- 
ing the  early  distribution  of  Indian  linguistic  famiHes. 
Indian  Laws,  Codification,  Annotation,  and  Revision  of. 
Prepared  by  W.  K.  Watkins.  Government  Printing 
Office.  Washington.  1917. 
Indian  Population  in  the  United  States  and  Alaska.  Bu- 
reau of  Census.     Washington.     191 5. 

A  splendid  compilation  with  tables,  maps  and  charts. 
Based  on  U.  S.  Census  of  1910. 
Leupp,  Francis  E.     In  Red  Man's  Land.     New  York. 
1914. 

A  small  handbook  on  the  Indian  problem  by  a  for- 
mer Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs.  Contains  a  sup- 
plemental chapter  by  A.  F.  Beard  on  Christian  missions 
among  the  Indians. 

Another  and  fuller  discussion  by  Mr.  Leupp  is  The 
Indian  and  His  Problem.    New  York.    1910. 
MoFFETT,  Thomas  C.    The  American  Indian  on  the  New 
Trail.    New  York.    191 4. 

A  valuable  contribution  from  the  standpoint  of  Chris- 
tian missions. 
RoYCE,  Charles  C.    Indian  Land  Cessions  in  the  United 
States.    Government  Printing  Office.     1899. 

This  is  also  a  government  publication  and  is  Part  2 


18  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

of  the  Eighteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of 
American  Ethnology. 

The  introduction  by  Cyrus  Thomas  gives  much  valu- 
able information  on  the  policy  of  the  early  colonizing 
nations,  of  the  various  English  colonies,  and  of  the 
United  States  toward  Indian  land  claims. 

The  body  of  the  volume  contains  a  tabular  schedule 
of  the  successive  Indian  land  cessions  arranged  chrono- 
logically; also  a  series  of  graphic,  colored  maps  showing 
the  various  cessions  in  the  different  states. 


CHAPTER  II. 

PREACHING. 

The  founding  by  Friends  of  permanent  mission  es- 
tablishments among  the  Indians  did  not  occur  until 
the  last  decade  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Prior  to  that 
time  individual  Friends,  under  a  "  concern,"  preached 
the  Gospel  to  the  savages,  and  Friends  in  general 
sought  to  cultivate  kindly  relations  with  them  and  pro- 
tect them  from  the  injustice  and  the  vices  of  unprin- 
cipled white  men.  This  preaching  and  practice  of  the 
Christian  virtues  among  the  Indians  during  the  first 
century  and  a  half  of  Quakerism  form  suitable  divi- 
sions of  this  study  and  a  fitting  introduction  to  the 
later  work  of  Friends  in  regular  mission  establish- 
ments. The  early  preaching  of  Friends  among  the  In- 
dians will  be  described  in  this  chapter,  and  practice  in 
the  two  following  chapters. 

It  was  a  "  weighty  concern  "  of  the  first  generations 
of  Friends  that  the  Gospel  should  be  preached  to  the 
American  Indians,  and  the  story  of  this  early  ministry 
is  suitably  opened  by  the  words  and  acts  of  the  founder 
of  the  Society  of  Friends.  George  Fox,  shortly  after 
the  beginning  of  his  ministry  in  England,  admonished 
Friends  in  America  (1667)  to  "go  and  discourse  with 
some  of  the  Heathen  Kings,  desiring  them  to  gather 
their  Council  and  People  together,  that  you  may  de- 
clare God's  Everlasting  Truth,  and  his  Everlasting 
Way  of  Life  and  Salvation  to  them,  knowing  that 

19 


20  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Christ  is  the  promise  of  God  to  them,  a  Covenant  of 
Light  to  the  Gentiles."^ 

A  few  years  later  (1671-1672)  Fox  had  the  op- 
portunity to  put  his  own  suggestion  into  practice  during 
his  sojourn  in  America,  and  he  was  not  recreant. 
From  Rhode  Island  to  the  Carolinas  the  founder  of 
Quakerism  traveled  and  whenever  opportunity  offered 
he  preached  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles.  The  picture 
of  this  rugged  apostle  of  Truth  ministering  to  the  rude 
savages  in  their  forest  haunts  is  simply  but  vividly  pic- 
tured in  his  own  words :  "  I  had  a  Meetinge  at  Shelter 
Island  amonge  the  Indians,  and  the  King  and  his  Coun- 
cell  with  about  100  more  Indians  were  with  him,  and 
they  sate  about  two  hours  and  I  spoke  to  them  by  an 
Interpreter,  .  .  .  and  they  appeared  very  Loveinge, 
and  they  saide  all  was  truth,  and  did  make  a  confes- 
sion after  the  Meetinge  of  it ;  and  soe  I  have  set  up  a 
meetinge  amonge  them  once  a  fortnight  and  a  friende 
Joseph  Silvister  is  to  reade  the  Scriptures  to  them." 
Again,  on  Fox's  return  from  New  England  to  Mary- 
land, he  describes  a  large  meeting  of  white  people  with 
a  few  Indians  present:  "And  an  Indian  Emperour, 
and  one  of  his  great  men,  and  another  great  man  of 
another  Nation  of  the  Indians,  and  they  stayed  all 
the  Meetinge,  and  I  had  a  good  speech  with  them  the 
night  before,  .  .  .  and  they  Received  the  truth,  and 
was  very  Loveinge  and  the  Emperour  saide  hee  did 
beleeve  that  I  was  a  very  honest  man,  blessed  be  the 
Lord  his  truth  doth  spreade."  Some  idea  of  Fox's 
teaching  to  the  Indians  may  be  gathered  from  his  de- 
scription of  a  meeting  with  them  in  North  Carolina : 
"  I  went  amonge  the  Indians  .  .  .  and  shewed  them 

1  Fox,  Epistles  (edn.  1698),  254. 


PREACHING.  21 

that  God  made  all  things  in  six  dayes,  and  made  but 
one  man  and  a  woman  and  how  that  God  did  drowne 
the  old  world,  because  of  their  wickedness,  and  soe 
alonge  to  Christ,  and  how  that  hee  did  dye  for  all  and 
for  their  sinns,  and  did  inlighten  them,  and  if  they 
did  doe  evill  hee  would  burne  them,  and  if  they  did 
well,  they  should  not  bee  burned."^ 

It  is  difficult  to  say  how  much  the  untutored  natives 
profited  by  this  doctrine,  which  was  happily  succeeded 
by  the  teaching  of  industrial  arts  in  the  later  mission 
period.  But  the  interest  and  good-will  of  the  savages 
may  be  attested  to  the  modern  reader  as  to  Fox  him- 
self by  the  fact  that  they  stayed  through  his  rather  pro- 
longed discourses  and  were  well  disposed  toward  him 
afterward.^  The  zeal  of  the  Quaker  apostle  and  the 
kindliness  of  the  Indians  show  unmistakably  in  the 
typical  entries  of  the  Journal :  "  Wee  declared  the  day 
of  the  Lord  to  them,''  and  "  They  was  very  Loveinge." 

Nor  did  George  Fox  forget  his  dusky  hosts  of  the 
American  forests  after  his  return  to  England.  Writ- 
ing to  Virginia  Friends  in  1673  ^^  says:  "If  you  go 
over  again  to  Carolina,  you  may  enquire  of  Capt. 
Batts,  the  Old  Governor,  with  whom  I  left  a  Paper 
to  be  read  to  the  Emperor,  and  his  Thirty  Kings  under 

2  For  this  and  the  preceding  quotations  see  Fox,  Journal 
(Camb.  edn.  1911),  2:  224,  229,  236.  For  further  references  on 
Indians  see  Index  of  the  Journal.  It  has  seemed  proper  in  this 
treatise  to  modernize  somewhat  the  spelling  and  punctuation  of 
the  original  journal  for  the  sake  of  clearness,  yet  not  so  com- 
pletely as  to  destroy  entirely  the  quaintness  of  the  original  style. 
— See  also  "  The  American  Journey  of  George  Fox  "  in  Journal 
of  Friends'  Historical  Society  (London),  9  ^,1912)  :  4-52. 

3  John  Burnyeat  tells  of  a  meeting  which  he  attended  in  Mary- 
land at  which  George  Fox  preached  for  nearly  five  hours  to  the 
Indians. — Writings  of  John  Burnyeat  (1691),  60. 

3 


22  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

him  of  the  Tusrowres  (Tuscaroras),  who  were  to 
come  to  treat  for  peace  with  the  People  of  CaroHna."* 
Again  in  1679  he  wrote  to  "  Friends  in  America " 
urging  that  they  teach  the  Indians  the  universaHty  of 
Christ's  redemption,  who  "tasted  Death  for  every 
Man,  .  .  .  and  is  the  Propitiation  not  for  the  Sins  of 
Christians  only,  but  for  the  Sins  of  the  whole  World." 
Two  years  later  he  sent  a  similar  message  to  the 
Friends  of  Carolina,  and  in  1682  in  "An  Epistle  to  all 
Planters,  and  Such  Who  are  Transporting  Themselves 
into  Foreign  Plantations  in  America,"  he  says :  "  And 
in  all  places  where  you  do  outwardly  live  and  settle, 
invite  all  the  Indians  and  their  Kings,  and  have  Meet- 
ings with  them,  or  they  with  you."  So  to  the  Friends 
of  West  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania  in  1687  and  to 
Friends  in  all  the  American  colonies  in  1689  George 
Fox  wrote  urging  them  to  be  true  to  their  duty 
of  carrying  the  Gospel  to  the  Indians.  His  life  was 
now  drawing  to  its  close  but  his  passion  for  the  sal- 
vation of  the  American  savages  burned  without  falter. 
In  1690,  only  a  few  months  before  his  death,  he  wrote: 
"  Dear  Friends  and  Brethren,  Ministers,  Exhorters, 
and  Admonishers,  that  are  gone  into  America  and  the 
islands  thereaway.  Stir  up  the  gift  of  God  in  you,  and 
the  pure  mind,  and  improve  your  talents,  that  ye  may 
be  the  light  of  the  world,  a  city  set  upon  a  hill,  that 
cannot  be  hid.  Let  your  light  shine  among  the  In- 
dians, the  Blacks  and  the  Whites,  that  ye  may  answer 
the  truth  in  them,  and  bring  them  to  the  standard  and 
ensign,  that  God  hath  set  up,  Christ  Jesus.  .  .  .  And 
Friends,  .  .  .  have  meetings  with  the  Indian  kings, 
and  their  councils  and  subjects  everywhere,  and  with 

*  Fox,  Epistles  (edn.  1698),  336. 


PREACHING.  23 

others.  Bring  them  all  to  the  baptizing  and  circum- 
cising Spirit,  by  which  they  may  know  God,  and  serve 
and  worship  Him."  Such  is  the  urgent  plea  made  by 
the  founder  of  Quakerism  in  the  last  days  of  his  life, 
a  plea  to  which  all  later  efforts  of  Friends  on  behalf  of 
the  Indians  make  answer.^ 

Many  other  early  Friends  felt  the  call  to  speak  to 
the  spiritual  need  of  the  savages,  and  it  is  worth  the 
effort  to  follow  a  few  of  them  in  their  arduous  jour- 
neyings. 

More  than  a  decade  before  George  Fox  visited 
America  there  were  Quaker  apostles  to  the  Indians. 
In  1658  Josiah  Coale  and  Thomas  Thurston  made  their 
remarkable  journey  from  Virginia  to  Long  Island 
through  the  Indian  country,  as  will  be  related  in  the 
following  chapter.^  The  former  Friend  continued  the 
journey  to  New  England  and  preached  to  the  natives 
at  various  places.  The  earliest  Quaker  ministry  to 
the  Indians  of  which  a  contemporary  description  has 
been  found  is  recounted  in  the  following  excerpt  from 
a  letter  of  Josiah  Coale  written  at  this  time:  "I  was 
moved  to  goe  to  a  serten  Island  (in  New  England) 
caled  Martens  [Marthas]  Vineyard  to  visit  som  In- 
dians ther  amongst  whom  I  had  felt  desires  to  know 
the  Lord,  and  I  had  A  meeting  amongst  them,  and  they 
were  very  Loving  to  mee,  and  tould  mee  they  much 
desired  to  know  God,  and  afterwards  at  Another  place 

5  For  the  epistles  quoted  or  referred  to  above  see  Fox,  Epistles 
(edn.  1698),  426-427,  463,  477,  553.  And  Journal  of  George  Fox 
(Bicent.  edn.,   1901),  2:  493,  502. 

6  See  below,  p.  41.  Besides  this  early  incident  it  is  almost  cer- 
tain that  in  1657  Christopher  Holder  and  John  Copeland  preached 
to  the  friendly  Indians  who  entertained  them  for  three  days  on 
Martha's  Vineyard,  but  the  fact  is  not  mentioned  in  the  account 
in  Norton's  Ensigne.     See  below,  p.  41. 


24  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Neare  plimouth  Coleney  I  was  amongst  the  Indians 
amongst  whom  was  true  Breathings  after  the  Knowl- 
edg  of  God."^ 

The  following  year,  1659,  John  Taylor,  a  Friend  of 
York,  England,  traveled  in  America  and  came  in  touch 
with  the  Indians  on  Long  Island.  His  Journal  tells 
the  story  of  his  message  to  them :  "  And  so  when  I 
had  an  opportunity  to  declare  the  Truth  to  them,  and 
to  turn  them  from  Darkness  to  the  Light  of  Christ 
Jesus,  in  their  own  Hearts,  which  would  teach  them, 
and  give  them  the  Knowledge  of  God  that  made  them. 
And  they  heard  me  soberly  and  did  Confess  to  the 
Truth  I  spake,  by  an  Interpreter  that  was  my  Guide. 
And  they  were  Loving  and  Kind  afterwards  to 
Friends."^  Prophetic  of  the  later  kindly  relations  be- 
tween Friends  and  the  Indians  is  the  final  statement  of 
this  early  Friend,  who  was  one  of  the  first  members 
of  the  Society  to  carry  the  Gospel  message  to  them. 

William  Penn's  benevolence  to  the  Indians  is  best 
seen  in  his  practical  dealings  with  them.  He  felt  that 
they  could  be  won  to  Christianity  most  readily  "  hy 
just  and  lenient  measures,"  as  he  expressed  it  in  his 
application  to  the  Crown  for  the  grant  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. But  he  was  also  desirous  that  as  much  as  might 
be  they  should  be  taught  the  precepts  of  Christianity. 
"  My  Friends :  There  is  a  great  God  and  power  that 
hath  made  the  world  and  all  things  therein,  to  whom 
you  and  I  and  all  people  owe  their  being  and  well- 
being;  to  whom  you  and  I  must  one  day  give  an  ac- 
count for  all  that  we  do  in  the  world.    This  great  God 

7  Transcript  of  MS.  letter  in  Devonshire  House,  London : 
Josiah  Coale  to  George  Bishop,  6  mo.  2d,  1658,  Letter  reprinted 
in  Bulletin  of  Friends'  Hist.  Soc.  (Phila.),  6  (1914)  :  2-5. 

8  John  Taylor,  Journal  (1710),  7-8. 


PREACHING.  25 

hath  written  his  law  in  our  hearts,  by  which  we  are 
commanded  to  Hve  and  help  and  do  good  to  one  an- 
other."^ Such  was  the  simple,  kindly  message  sent  by 
the  young  proprietor  to  the  Indians  of  Pennsylvania 
the  year  before  his  own  first  visit  to  his  new  province. 
The  abiding  interest  of  Penn  in  the  spiritual  welfare 
of  the  Indians  is  shown  in  a  minute  of  Philadelphia 
Monthly  Meeting  in  1700 :  "  Our  dear  Friend  and  gov- 
ernor having  laid  before  this  meeting  a  concern  that 
hath  laid  upon  his  mind  for  sometime  concerning  the 
Negroes  and  the  Indians,  that  Friends  ought  to  be 
very  careful  in  discharging  a  good  conscience  towards  ^^ 
them  in  all  respects,  but  more  especially  for  the  good 
of  their  souls,  and  that  they  might,  as  frequent  as  may 
be,  come  to  meetings  upon  first  days ;  upon  consid- 
eration whereof,  this  meeting  concludes  to  appoint  a 
meeting  for  the  Negroes  to  be  kept  once  a  month."^^ 
No  meeting  was  provided  for  the  Indians  as  they  prob- 
ably could  not  come  regularly  to  the  city  and  the 
matter  of  holding  meetings  among  them  was  still  left 
to  individual  "  concerns."  The  interest  of  William 
Penn  is  however  evident,  as  it  is  also  in  the  following 
account  by  John  Richardson  of  his  own  concern  for 
the  Indians  and  Penn's  cooperation  therein.  John 
Richardson  was  an  English  Friend  traveling  in  Amer- 
ica and  was  present  at  a  great  meeting  held  between 
Penn  and  the  Indians  just  before  the  former  returned 
to  England  in  1701.    Richardson  says:  "When  much 

9  Letter  of  Penn  to  the  Indians,  18  Oct.,  1681,  carried  to  Amer- 
ica by  William  Markham,  Penn's  cousin  and  deputy. — Quoted  in 
Sharpless,  Quaker  Experiment,  155-156.  See  Select  Works  of 
William  Penn  (edn,  1771),  XXVIII.  Reprinted  in  many  collec- 
tions, 

10  Quoted  in  Conduct  of  Friends  (1844),  55,  56. 


26  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

of  the  Matters  were  gone  through,  I  put  William  Penn 
in  mind  to  enquire  of  the  Interpreter,  if  he  could  find 
some  Terms  or  Words  that  might  be  intelligible  to 
them,  in  a  religious  Sense,  by  which  he  might  reach 
the  Understandings  of  the  Natives,  and  inculcate  into 
their  Minds  a  Sense  of  the  Principles  of  Truth,  such 
as  Christ's  manifesting  himself  to  the  inward  Senses  of 
the  Soul,  by  his  Light,  Grace  or  holy  Spirit,  with  the 
Manner  of  the  Operations  and  working  thereof  in  the 
Hearts  of  the  Children  of  Men,  and  how  it  did  re- 
prove for  Evil,  and  minister  Peace  and  Comfort  to  the 
Soul  in  its  Obedience  and  Well-doing;  or,  as  near  as 
he  could,  come  to  the  Substance  of  this  in  their  own 
Language.  William  Penn  much  pressed  the  Matter 
upon  the  Interpreter  to  do  his  best,  in  any  Terms,  that 
might  reach  their  Capacities. "^^  The  effort  to  get  these 
thoughts  interpreted  to  the  Indians  met  with  little  suc- 
cess on  this  occasion,  but  later  Richardson  had  better 
success  when  he  visited  some  of  the  Pennsylvania  In- 
dians in  their  own  haunts.  He  seemed  to  have  a  more 
satisfactory  interpreter  at  this  time,  and  the  meeting 
makes  one  of  the  finest  pictures  extant  of  the  ministry 
of  early  Friends  to  the  natives :  "  When  I  came  to 
them,  and  signified  that  I  was  come  from  a  far  Coun- 
try with  a  Message  from  the  Great  Man  above  (as 
they  call  God)  and  my  Message  was  to  endeavour  to 
persuade  them  that  they  should  not  be  Drunkards,  nor 
steal,  nor  kill  one  another,  nor  fight,  nor  commit 
Adultery,  nor  put  away  their  Wives,  especially  for 
small  Faults,  which  (as  I  understood)  is  usual  with 
them  to  do;  for  if  they  did  those  Things,  the  great  and 
good  Man  above  would  be  angry  with  them,  and  would 

^^  Account  of  the  Life  of  John  Richardson  (1783),  135-136. 


PREACHING.  27 

not  prosper  them,  but  bring  Trouble  on  them;  but  if 
they  were  careful  to  refrain  these  Evils  (before  men- 
tioned) then  would  God  love  them,  and  prosper  them, 
and  speak  Peace  to  them;  or  very  near  these  Words. 
And  when  the  Interpreter  expressed  these  Things  to 
them  in  their  own  Language,  they  wept,  and  Tears 
ran  down  their  naked  Bodies,  and  they  smote  their 
Hands  upon  their  Breasts  and  I  perceived  said  some- 
thing to  the  Interpreter :  I  asked  what  they  said  ?  He 
told  me  they  said,  all  that  I  had  delivered  to  them  was 
good,  and  except  the  great  Man  had  sent  me,  I  could 
not  have  told  them  those  Things.  I  desired  the  Inter- 
preter to  ask  them,  how  they  knew  what  I  said  to  them 
was  good?  they  replied,  and  smote  their  Hands  on 
their  Breasts,  the  good  Man  here  (meaning  in  their 
Hearts)  told  them  what  I  said  was  all  good.  They 
manifested  much  Love  to  me  in  their  Way,  and  I  be- 
lieve the^Love  of  God  is  to  them,  and  all  People  in  the 
Day  of  their  Visitation. "^^ 

Thomas  Story,  traveling  in  America  in  1699,  ^^^^s 
interestingly  of  his  efforts  to  declare  spiritual  things 
to  the  natives.  At  a  meeting  with  some  Indians  in 
Virginia  he  declared :  "  That  we  did  not  come  among 
them  for  any  Hurt  to  them  [they  seemed  somewhat 
fearful]  or  Gain  to  ourselves,  but  being  lately  arrived 
from  England,  had  a  desire  to  see  them ;  for  we  loved 
Indians,  and  had  something  to  say  to  them  concerning 
the  great  God,  who  made  the  Heavens,  the  Sun,  Moon, 
Earth,  and  all  that  dwell  therein.  Englishmen,  Indians, 
and  all  Nations;  that  he  loves  all  good  English,  and 
good  Indians,  and  other  good  People  everywhere.  .  .  . 
And  that  God  had  placed  a  Witness  in  the  Heart  of 

^"^  Account  of  the  Life  of  John  Richardson  (1783),  138-139. 


28  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

every  Man,  which  approves  that  which  is  good,  and 
reproves  that  which  is  evil."  A  Httle  later  as  Thomas 
Story  was  passing  through  Connecticut  toward  Rhode 
Island  he  found  an  Indian  woman  spinning  at  a  wheel. 
"And  after  a  while  I  found  a  Concern  for  her  in  my 
Mind,  and  made  her  stop  her  Wheel,  and  then  spake 
to  her  of  the  Witness  of  God  in  her,  which  discovered 
to  her  Good  and  Evil,  that  dictates  the  former,  and  re- 
proves the  latter.  To  which  she  confessed,  and  said, 
with  Tears  in  her  Eyes,  that  she  knew  better  than  she 
practiced, — and  was  very  humble."^^ 

A  visit  of  Thomas  Chalkley  to  some  Shawnee  and 
other  Indians  is  of  interest.  With  thirteen  companions 
Chalkley  traveled  into  the  back  country  "  near  Sus- 
quehannah,  at  Conestogoe,"  in  southern  Pennsylvania. 
"  We  had  first  a  meeting  with  the  Senecas,  with  which 
they  were  much '  affected ;  and  they  called  the  other 
nation,  viz.,  the  Shawanese,  and  interpreted  to  them 
what  we  had  spoke  in  their  meeting,  and  the  poor  In- 
dians, particularly  some  of  the  young  men  and  women, 
were  under  a  solid  exercise  and  concern.  We  had 
also  a  meeting  with  the  other  nation,  and  they  were  all 
very  kind  to  us,  and  desired  more  such  opportunities ; 
the  which  I  hope  Divine  Providence  will  order  them, 
if  they  are  worthy  thereof.  The  Gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ  was  preached  freely  to  them,  and  faith  in 
Christ,  who  was  put  to  death  in  Jerusalem,  by  the  un- 
believing Jews ;  and  that  this  same  Jesus  came  to  save 
people  from  their  sins,  and  by  his  grace  and  light  in 
the  soul,  shows  to  man  his  sins,  and  convinceth  him 
thereof,  delivering  him  out  of  them,  and  gives  inward 
peace  and  comfort  to  the  soul  for  well-doing,  and 

^^  Journal  of  Thomas  Story  (1747),  162,  195, 


PREACHING.  29 

sorrow  and  trouble  for  evil  doing;  to  all  of  which,  as 
their  manner  is,  they  gave  publick  assents ;  and  to  that 
of  the  light  in  the  soul,  they  gave  double  assent,  and 
seemed  much  affected  with  the  doctrine  of  the  truth; 
also  the  benefit  of  the  holy  Scriptures  was  largely 
opened  to  them."^*  The  reference  to  the  readiness 
with  which  the  Indians  assented  to  the  doctrine  of  the 
Inward  Light  is  mentioned  many  times  by  early 
Friends  from  the  time  of  Fox's  discourse  with  the  In- 
dians during  his  sojourn  in  America.  The  doctrine 
seemed  to  tally  so  well  with  the  spiritual  conceptions 
of  the  natives  and  their  apprehension  of  the  promptings 
of  conscience  that  they  seem  readily  to  have  attained 
what  seemed  to  be  common  ground  with  Friends. 

John  Woolman  is  usually  and  rightly  thought  of  as 
the  champion  of  the  rights  of  negroes,  but  nowhere 
did  his  sweet  spirit  blossom  in  more  fragrant  beauty 
than  when  it  opened  toward  the  American  Indians. 
Histories  do  not  improve  on  the  writing  of  John  Wool- 
man  and  the  story  of  his  visit  to  the  Indians  of  central 
Pennsylvania  in  1763  is  best  told  in  the  classic  beauty 
and  simplicity  of  his  own  Journal :  "  Having  for  many 
years  felt  love  in  my  heart  towards  the  natives  of  this 
land  who  dwell  far  back  in  the  wilderness,  whose  an- 
cestors were  formerly  the  owners  and  possessors  of 
the  land  where  we  dwell,  and  who  for  a  small  con- 
sideration assigned  their  inheritance  to  us,  and  being 
at  Philadelphia  in  the  eighth  month,  1761,  I  fell  in 
company  with  some  of  those  natives  who  lived  on  the 
east  branch  of  the  river  Susquehanna,  at  an  Indian 
town  called  Wehaloosing  [Wyalusing],  two  hundred 
miles  from  Philadelphia "  and  thereafter  "  at  times  I 

^*  Journal  of  Thomas  Chalkley  (1818),  73. 


30  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

felt  an  inward  drawing  towards  a  visit  to  that  place." 
He  told  his  "  concern  "  to  no  one  but  his  wife  for  some 
time,  but  finally  laid  it  before  his  Monthly,  Quarterly, 
and  the  General  Spring  Meeting  (i 762-1 763)  and 
found  Friends  in  unity  with  his  concern.  Undeterred 
by  the  rumor  of  an  Indian  uprising  on  the  frontier  he 
finally  set  out  on  his  perilous  journey  with  another 
Friend,  Benjamin  Parvin,  as  companion,  and  with 
some  Indian  guides.  After  a  long  and  wearisome  jour- 
ney the  Quaker  apostle  reached  his  destination.  The 
famous  Moravian  missionary  David  Zeisberger  had 
arrived  at  Wyalusing  before  John  Woolman  and 
had  been  accepted  by  the  Indians  as  their  regular  mis- 
sionary. Quaker  and  Moravian  entered  however  into 
harmonious  relations  and  John  Woolman  was  given 
full  opportunity  to  deliver  his  message.  Describing 
his  feeling  toward  the  Indians  and  his  ministry  to 
them  he  says :  "  Before  our  first  meeting  this  morning, 
I  was  led  to  meditate  on  the  manifold  difficulties  of 
these  Indians,  who,  by  the  permission  of  the  Six  Na- 
tions, dwell  in  these  parts.  A  near  sympathy  with 
them  was  raised  in  me,  and,  my  heart  being  enlarged 
in  the  love  of  Christ,  I  thought  that  the  affectionate 
care  of  a  good  man  for  his  only  brother  in  affliction 
does  not  exceed  what  I  then  felt  for  that  people." 
Again  he  says :  "  In  the  afternoon,  my  heart  being 
filled  with  a  heavenly  care  for  their  good,  I  spake  to 
them  awhile  by  interpreters;  but  none  of  them  being 
perfect  in  the  work,  and  I  feeling  the  current  of  love 
run  strong,  told  the  interpreters  that  I  believed  some 
of  the  people  would  understand  me,  and  so  I  proceeded 
without  them;  and  I  believe  the  Holy  Ghost  wrought 


PREACHING.  31 

on  some  hearts  to  edification  where  all  the  words  were 
not  understood."  John  Woolman  remained  some  days 
among  the  Indians  and  thus  describes  his  last  meeting 
with  them:  "The  following  morning,  in  meeting,  my 
heart  was  enlarged  in  pure  love  among  them,  and  in 
short  plain  sentences  I  expressed  several  things  that 
rested  upon  me,  which  one  of  the  interpreters  gave 
the  people  pretty  readily.  The  meeting  ended  in  sup- 
plication, and  I  had  cause  humbly  to  acknowledge  the 
loving  kindness  of  the  Lord  towards  us;  and  then  I 
believed  that  a  door  remained  open  for  the  faithful 
desciples  of  Jesus  Christ  to  labour  among  these  peo- 
ple. And  now,  feeling  my  mind  at  liberty  to  return, 
I  took  my  leave  of  them  in  general  at  the  conclusion 
of  what  I  had  said  in  meeting,  and  we  then  prepared 
to  go  homeward."  So  ended  this  memorable  visit  of 
John  Woolman  to  the  Pennsylvania  Indians.  There  is 
a  spirit  over  the  whole  narrative  that  cannot  well  be 
caught  in  a  few  excerpts.  His  universal  love  for  the 
oppressed  shines  through  all  the  story  and  in  one  place 
came  to  a  very  sun-burst  of  loving-kindness  when  on 
the  outward  journey  of  this  mission  he  saw  in  pros- 
pect the  long  line  of  favorably  situated  English  settle- 
ments, along  the  American  coast,  and  in  contrast  "  the 
difficulties  attending  the  natives  as  well  as  the  negroes 
in  many  places."  Continuing,  he  says :  "  A  weighty 
and  heavenly  care  came  over  my  mind,  and  love  filled 
my  heart  towards  all  mankind,  in  which  I  felt  a  strong 
engagement  that  we  might  be  obedient  to  the  Lord 
while  in  tender  mercy  He  is  yet  calling  to  us,  and  that 
we  might  so  attend  to  pure  universal  righteousness  as 
to  give  no  just  cause  of  offence  to  the  gentiles,  who  do 


32  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

not  profess  Christianity,  whether  they  be  blacks  from 
Africa,  or  the  native  inhabitants  of  this  continent."^^ 

More  than  a  century  has  been  covered  thus  far  in 
the  narrative  of  this  chapter  and  in  approaching  the 
end  of  the  period  it  is  well  to  note  the  great  change 
that  has  come  in  the  situation  of  the  Indians. 

In  the  days  of  William  Penn  the  Delawares,  with 
whom  Friends   were  most  closely  associated  in  the 
early  days,  had  their  chief  habitat  along  the  Delaware 
River.    Thus  Friends,  settled  in  eastern  Pennsylvania 
I     and  New  Jersey,  came  readily  into  association  with 
J     them.    But  all  this  had  changed  by  the  end  of  the  eight- 
1^     eenth  century.     White  settlers,  including  great  num- 
I      bers    of    Germans    and    Scotch-Irish,    had    gradually 
1      pushed  the  Indians  westward.    Roughly  speaking  there 
\     were,  by  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  two  strata  of 
\    white  population  separating  the  Friends  in  the  east 
I   from  the  Indians  in  the  central  and  western  parts  of 
I  Pennsylvania.     The  first  stratum  was  composed  of 
Germans  who  poured  into  the  territory  just  west  of 
that  occupied  by  Friends.    The  second  was  of  Scotch- 
Irish,  further  westward,  who  clung  to  the  frontier  and 
came  roughly  into  contact  with  the  retreating  Indians. 
Thus  the  natives  of  Pennsylvania  had  been  pushed 
back.     The  Delawares  removed  to  the  Susquehanna 
River  about  1742,  then  gradually  moved  across  the 
Allegheny  mountains,  were  occupying  tracts  in  eastern 

^5  Journal  of  John  Woolman  (1900),  163-181.  See  also  E.  de 
Schweinitz,  Life  and  Times  of  David  Zeisberger,  2yi.  Many  in- 
teresting details  of  Woolman's  visit  to  Wyalusing  will  be  found  in 
the  new  edition  of  The  Journal  and  Essays  of  John  Woolman 
which  is  under  preparation  by  Amelia  Mott  Gummere  and  which 
the  present  author  has  had  the  privilege  of  consulting  in  manu- 
script form. 


PREACHING.  33 

Ohio  about  1751,  and  twenty-five  years  later  some  of 
them  were  forming  villages  in  Indiana. 

So  it  was  that  when  the  aged  Friend,  Zebulon  Hes- 
ton,  and  his  companion,  John  Parrish,  both  Friends  of 
Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting,  desired  to  make  a  re- 
ligious visit  to  the  Delawares  in  1773,  it  required  a 
long,  arduous  journey  westward.  The  most  distant 
settlement  visited  by  them  was  well  within  the  present 
state  of  Ohio  and  nearly  500  miles  from  Philadelphia. 
The  "concern"  of  Zebulon  Heston  and  the  unity  of 
Friends  therewith  is  indicated  in  the  following  extract 
from  a  letter  sent  to  the  Indians  on  that  occasion  by 
the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  of  Philadelphia :  "  Brethren, 
— We  write  this  to  you  by  our  beloved  friend  Zebulon 
Heston,  whose  mind  being  influenced  by  the  love  of 
Christ,  and  constrained  thereby,  engages  him  to  go 
and  visit  you,  being  desirous,  though  an  old  man,  to 
see  you  before  he  dies,  and  to  express  something  of 
the  love  of  God,  which  he  hath  known  to  preserve  him 
from  his  youth  to  this  day.  He  hath  approved  him- 
self a  faithful  minister  of  Christ,  both  in  word  and 
doctrine,  and  in  life  and  conversation,  and  we  hope 
you  will  receive  him  as  our  true  friend  and  brother." 

The  journey  of  Zebulon  Heston  and  John  Parrish 
occupied  about  ten  weeks  and  satisfactory  meetings 
were  held  with  the  Indians,  as  may  be  gathered  from 
the  following  extract  taken  from  the  kindly  reply  of 
the  Indians  to  the  above  epistle :  "  We  think  that  as  we 
two  brothers,  the  Quakers  and  Delawares,  were 
brought  up  together  as  the  children  of  one  man,  it  is 
our  Saviour's  will  we  should  be  of  one  religion.  .  .  . 
Now  you  have  come  and  opened  the  road.  .  .  .  We 
are  poor  and  weak,  and  not  able  to  judge  for  our- 


34  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

selves,  and  when  we  think  of  our  poor  children  it 
makes  us  sorry;  we  hope  you  will  instruct  us  in  the 
right  way,  both  in  things  of  this  life  as  well  as  the 
world  to  come."^^  Great  is  the  pathos  to  be  read  in 
those  lines  if  the  reader  but  remembers  the  proud  race 
of  Indians  who  treated  with  the  first  proprietor  of 
Pennsylvania  when  he  landed  on  the  shores  of  the 
Delaware. 

One  more  incident,  just  at  the  end  of  the  period 
covered  by  this  chapter,  may  be  cited  as  a  fitting  close 
to  this  portion  of  the  narrative.  William  Savery, 
David  Bacon,  John  Parrish,  and  James  Emlen  were 
appointed  by  the  Philadelphia  Meeting  for  Sufferings 
in  1794  to  attend  a  treaty  to  be  held  between  the  United 
States  and  the  Six  Nations  at  Canandaigua,  New 
York.  William  Savery  thus  describes  a  beautiful 
meeting  held  during  the  visit :  "  The  curiosity  of  the 
white  people  being  raised,  and  some  coming  from 
other  motives,  we  had  a  large  and  good  meeting,  which 
held  till  near  sunset;  both  whites  and  Indians  were 
quiet  and  behaved  decently;  as  many  of  the  Indians 
had  received  some  notion  of  the  Christian  religion 
from  missionaries,  and  were  desirous  to  begin  the 
service  with  singing  of  hymns  or  psalms,  and  we  not 
thinking  it  would  be  best  to  object  to  their  wishes,  they 
appeared  very  devout,  and  I  thought  that  the  melody 
and  softness  of  their  voices  in  the  Indian  language, 
and  the  sweetness  and  harmony  that  attended,  ex- 
ceeded by  far  anything  of  the  kind  I  had  ever  heard 
among  the  white  people.     Being  in  the  midst  of  the 

16  Phila.  Meeting  for  Sufferings,  Minutes,  i  :  388  f.  Conduct  of 
Friends  (1844),  94-97. 


PREACHING.  35 

woods,  the  satisfaction  of  hearing  those  poor  untutored 
people  sing,  with  every  appearance  of  devotion,  their 
Maker's  praise,  and  the  serious  attention  they  paid  to 
what  was  delivered  to  them,  conspired  to  make  it  a 
solemn  meeting,  long  to  be  remembered  by  me."^^ 

From  Josiah  Coale  in  1658  to  William  Savery  in 
1794  a  long  line  of  Quaker  apostles  to  the  Indians  has 
been  followed.  Other  names,  such  as  those  of  John 
Bowater,  Robert  Widders,  James  Dickenson,  Samuel 
Bownas,  Samuel  Jennings,  Thomas  Budd,  Robert 
Stacey,  William  Reckitt,  Thomas  Olive,  Thomas  Tur- 
ner, Roger  Gill,  Thomas  Beales,  Sarah  Stephenson, 
and  William  Robinson,  might  have  been  mentioned. 
Each  of  these  Friends  held  meetings  with  the  Indians, 
or  at  least  was  companion  to  some  ministering  Friend 
on  such  occasions.  Other  Friends  came  into  touch 
with  the  Indians  and  preached  to  them,  although  in 
many  cases  no  record  has  been  left  of  the  fact.  Some- 
times a  record  is  extant  of  meetings  appointed  for  the 
Indians  with  no  mention  of  the  Friends  present. 

Yet  in  the  early  period  Friends  were  not  so  zealous 
as  some  other  denominations,  such  as  the  CathoHcs, 
Congregationalists,  and  Moravians,  in  preaching  the 
Gospel  to  the  Indians.  Individual  Friends  "  under  a 
religious  concern "  visited  the  Indians  from  time  to 
time  and  spoke  to  them  of  spiritual  things,  finding 
them  especially  appealed  to  by  the  doctrine  of  the  uni- 
versal light  of  Christ  in  the  hearts  of  men.  But  from 
the  beginning  many  Friends  felt  and  expressed  doubt 
as  to  the  efficacy  of  much  preaching  to  the  natives 
without   some  other  things,  notably  the  teaching  to 

^T  Journal  of  William  Savery  (edn.  1863),  88-100. 


36  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

them  of  useful  industrial  arts  and  the  daily  practice 
on  the  part  of  the  whites  of  the  Christian  virtues  that 
were  preached  to  the  Indians. 

The  practice  of  Friends  during  the  period  thus  far 
covered  will  be  narrated  in  the  succeeding  chapter. 
In  the  later  period,  covered  in  other  chapters,  appear 
the  efforts  of  Friends  to  teach  the  Indians  useful  arts 
in  regular  mission  establishments. 

"  Ruminating  on  the  state  of  the  Oneida  Indians," 
writes  William  Savery  in  1794,  "who  are  said  to  be 
more  civilized  and  better  instructed  in  religion  than 
any  others,  it  is  natural  to  enquire  what  influence  it 
has  had  on  their  manners  and  morals,  which,  from 
anything  I  can  discover,  has  yet  been  very  small.  .  .  . 
They  have  heard  of  Jesus  Christ  through  their  mis- 
sionary, and  have  been  taught  to  sing  psalms  and 
hymns  in  their  own  soft  and  engaging  language;  but 
it  appears  to  me  that  the  great  body  of  the  nation  have 
received  the  gospel  in  word  only,  and  not  in  power."^® 

Similarly  in  New  England  more  than  a  century 
before,  George  Fox  and  other  Friends  had  found  the 
Indians  little  benefited  by  the  preaching  that  they  re- 
ceived. They  were  ill-disposed  to  accept  good  pre- 
cepts from  those  who  in  practice  despoiled  them.^^ 

The  method  of  teaching  the  useful,  industrial  arts 
to  the  Indians  as  a  basis  for  spiritual  influence  will  be 
illustrated  in  the  later  pages  of  this  work.  The  in- 
creased effect  that  might  have  been  wrought  by  the 
early  preaching  of  Friends  and  all  others,  if  the  white 

i^  Journal  of  William  Savery  (edn.  1863),  loi. 
19  Fox,  Journal  (Camb.  edn.  191 1),  2:  250.     See  also  Bowden, 
Friends  in  America,  i :  125. 


PREACHING.  37 

men  had  practiced  more  consistently  the  Christian  vir- 
tues, pictures  itself  clearly  in  the  mind  of  every 
thoughtful  student. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL    NOTE. 

For  bibliography  covering  this  chapter  see  Bibliograph- 
ical Note  at  close  of  Chapter  IV. 


CHAPTER  III. 

PRACTICE. 

When  William  Penn  petitioned  Charles  II  for  a 
grant  of  land  in  America  he  stated  that  one  of  his 
objects  was  the  conversion  of  the  poor  Indians  to 
Christ's  kingdom  "  by  just  and  lenient  measures'^  He 
evidently  foresaw  that  the  practice  of  the  Christian 
virtues  would  be  more  convincing  than  the  preaching 
of  them.  This  was  especially  true  among  the  Amer- 
ican Indians  who  were  quick,  keen  judges  of  human 
nature. 

In  the  period  covered  in  this  and  the  preceding  chap- 
ter, reaching  from  the  birth  of  Quakerism  to  the  close 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  practical  relations  of 
Friends  with  the  Indians  form  the  most  important  and 
most  interesting  part  of  the  story.  The  province  of 
Pennsylvania  looms  biggest  in  it  because  there  Friends 
had  for  about  seventy-five  years  a  fairly  free  hand 
to  work  out  their  ideals  in  practical  politics.  But  in 
the  Jerseys,  Rhode  Island,  and  the  Carolinas  they  had 
some  period  of  political  influence,  and  in  other  colonies 
they  found  many  opportunities  in  private  life  to  trans- 
late precept  into  practice.  The  story  of  Friends'  deal- 
ings with  Indians  in  Pennsylvania  during  this  period 
has  been  told  and  retold,  and  would  easily  fill  a  stout 
volume  if  recited  in  detail.  To  relate  it  in  a  sirlgle 
chapter,  with  the  additional  account  of  similar  activi- 

38 


PRACTICE.  39 

ties  in  other  colonies,  makes  the  task  largely  one  of 
condensation.^ 

The  kindly  relations  that  existed  between  early 
Friends  and  the  Indians  have  been  a  subject  for  ideal- 
ization. The  great  treaty  at  Shackamaxon  has  been 
immortalized  by  the  brush  of  West  and  the  pen  of 
Voltaire  as  "  the  only  treaty  never  sworn  to  and  never 
broken."  Perhaps  the  goodness  of  the  early  Quakers 
in  these  respects  has  been  exaggerated  in  the  minds  of 
some  until  they  have  gained  the  impression  that  the 
action  of  Perm  and  other  Friends  in  paying  the  In- 
dians for  their  lands  was  without  precedent.  Such  an 
impression  is,  of  course,  wholly  contrary  to  fact,  as 
has  been  indicated  in  an  earlier  chapter  of  this  treatise.^ 

It  is  hardly  surprising,  therefore,  that  some  recent 
historians  have  rebelled  against  this  idealization  and 
in  their  efforts  to  correct  false  impressions  have  gone 
somewhat  to  the  other  extreme.  In  the  eyes  of  such 
an  adverse  critic  as  Francis  Parkman  the  admiration 
of  men  for  the  pacific  measures  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Quakers  in  their  dealings  with  the  Indians  "will  di- 
minish on  closely  viewing  the  circumstances  of  the 
case."  The  same  writer  goes  on  to  produce  an  argu- 
ment which  if  valid  would  tend  not  only  to  diminish 
but  well  nigh  to  destroy  entirely  any  admiration  for 
the  Quaker  policy.^  Such  adverse  criticism  has  prob- 
ably served  a  useful  purpose  in  making  Friends  and 
others  more  guarded  in  their  statements  of  the  facts 
and  more  careful  to  give  due  credit  to  other  denomina- 

1  In  addition  to  the  footnote  references  in  this  chapter  see 
Bibliographical  Note  at  the  end  of  Chapter  IV. 

2  See  pp.  3-4,  above. 

3  The  adverse  opinions  of  Parkman,  Fiske,  and  Hanna  are  dis- 
cussed below,  pp.  79-83. 


J^- 


40  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

tions  that  have  done  noble  work  for  the  American 
natives.  In  reviewing  the  kindness  and  justice  shown 
by  early  Friends  to  the  Indians,  the  writer  cannot  for- 
get and  the  reader  may  profitably  keep  before  his  eyes 
the  shining  examples  of  other  truly  benevolent  people 
who  dealt  righteously  with  their  savage  neighbors,  as 
recounted  in  the  opening  chapter  of  this  treatise.  Yet 
it  seems  well  within  the  bounds  of  truth  to  say  that 
few  facts  are  more  strongly  attested  by  historical  evi- 
dence or  more  universally  accepted  by  competent  his- 
torians than  the  fact  that  in  the  matter  of  fair  and 
kindly  dealings  with  the  natives.  Friends  hold  a  place 
unique.  As  compared  with  other  sects  they  were  tardy 
in  setting  up  regular  mission  establishments  among 
the  Indians,  a  fact  already  noted.  Their  early  preach- 
ing to  the  natives  was  only  occasional  because  left  to 
individual  "  concerns."  But  the  practice  of  the  Chris- 
tian virtues  in  dealing  with  the  Indians  was  a  very  pas- 
sion among  Friends.  They  seemed  in  this  respect  to 
seize  upon  the  best  practice  of  earlier  communities  in 
America,  fuse  with  it  their  own  vision  of  the  ideal, 
and  then  set  themselves  to  put  the  whole  high  con- 
ception into  persistent,  almost  stubborn  practice.  If 
the  virtue  of  Friends  in  this  regard  has  been  some 
whit  overdrawn  at  times  by  artist  or  historian  it  was 
probably  because  the  foundation  fact  of  the  case  was 
fit  subject  for  idealization  in  art  and  literature. 

The  experience  of  some  of  the  earliest  Friends' 
ministers  who  traveled  among  the  Indians  has  already 
been  recounted.  The  treatment  of  such  Friends  by 
the  natives  was  prophetic  of  the  kindly  relations  that 
were  to  exist  at  a  later  period. 

In  1656  an  old  man,  Nicholas  Upsall,  a  member  of 


PRACTICE.  41 

the  established  church  in  Boston,  was  exiled  from  that 
place  because  he  befriended  the  Quakers  who  were 
being  persecuted  there.  He  in  turn  was  befriended 
by  an  Indian  chief  who  remarked  pointedly :  "  What 
a  God  have  the  English  who  deal  so  with  one  another 
over  the  worship  of  their  God."  Upsall  later  became 
a  fully  "  convinced "  member  among  Friends.* 

When  Christopher  Holder  and  John  Copeland  went 
to  Martha's  Vineyard  in  1657  the  Governor  seized 
them  and  hired  an  Indian  to  carry  them  off  the  island. 
Fortunately  the  Indian  had  imbibed  some  of  the  spirit 
of  Christianity,  probably  from  the  missionary  efforts 
inaugurated  in  the  island  by  Thomas  Mayhew,  Jr.,  four- 
teen years  before.  For  three  days  the  sea  was  too 
rough  for  a  passage  to  the  mainland,  all  of  which  time, 
say  these  Friends :  "  We  received  no  small  love  from 
the  Indians,  the  like  we  could  not  receive  from  the 
English,  for  what  we  eat  we  could  not  persuade  him 
whom  we  were  withall  to  take  money  for  it,  he  saying 
that  we  was  strangers,  and  Jehovah  taught  him  to  love 
strangers."^ 

Similarly  Josiah  Coale  and  Thomas  Thurston  were 
treated  with  the  utmost  kindness  by  the  Indians  in  the 
course  of  their  dangerous  overland  journey  from  Vir- 
ginia to  New  York  in  1658.  As  they  traveled  north- 
ward from  Virginia  they  came  among  the  Susque- 
hanna Indians  who  received  them  most  hospitably, 
entertained  them  in  their  huts,  and  then  sent  several 
of  their  number  to  accompany  them  for  about  two 

*  Jones,  Quakers  in  American  Colonies,  40-41. 

5  Norton,  New  England's  Ensigne,  21-22.  The  above  men- 
tioned Friends  came  to  America  with  other  apostles  of  Quaker- 
ism in  the  ship  Woodhoxise.  See  Jones,  Quakers  in  Amer.  Cols., 
63,  65. 


42  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

hundred  miles  through  the  untracked  wilderness. 
These  Indian  companions  helped  the  Friends  across 
rivers  and  secured  for  them  a  supply  of  food.  "  After 
this  travel,"  says  Josiah  Coale,  "  we  came  to  a  place 
where  more  of  them  inhabited,  and  they  also  very 
kindly  entertained  us  in  their  houses,  where  we  re- 
mained about  sixteen  days,  my  fellow  traveler  being 
weak  of  body  through  sickness  and  lameness ;  in  which 
time  these  Indians  shewed  very  much  respect  to  us, 
for  they  gave  us  freely  of  the  best  they  could  get." 

A  little  later  in  New  England,  after  Josiah  Coale 
and  John  Copeland  had  been  beaten  and  imprisoned 
by  the  white  settlers,  the  former  found  a  safe  refuge 
among  the  Indians.  The  Indian  chief  sympathized 
with  the  persecuted  Friend  and  said :  "  The  Quakers 
are  honest  men  and  do  no  harm,  and  this  is  nO'  Eng- 
lishman's sea  or  land,  and  Quakers  shall  come  here  and 
welcome."  Josiah  Coale  was  much  moved  by  the 
kindness  of  his  dusky  hosts  and  wrote :  "  I  do  confess 
this  to  be  the  Lord's  hand  of  love  towards  me ;  through 
the  goodness  of  the  Lord  we  found  these  Indians 
more  sober  and  Christian-like  towards  us  than  the 
Christians  so-called."^ 

So  it  was  that  the  natives  received  the  blessing  of 
the  early  Quaker  apostles  who,  foot-sore,  sick,  and 
afflicted,  found  rest  in  the  wigwams  and  comfort  in 
the  humble  ministrations  of  the  children  of  the  forest. 
That  the  Indians  too  appreciated  the  attitude  of  early 

6  Bowden,  Friends  in  America,  i  :  123—125.  Bishop,  New  Eng- 
land Judged  (1703),  28-29.  Bowden  quotes  from  and  no  doubt 
Bishop  used  the  letter  cited  above,  p.  24,  Josiah  Coale  to  George 
Bishop,  6  mo.  2d,  1658.  From  endorsements  on  this  letter  it 
would  seem  that  Thomas  Chapman  accompanied  Coale  and 
Thurston  at  least  in  part  of  their  journey. 


PRACTICE.  43 

Friends  toward  them  can  not  be  doubted.  An  early 
historian  tells  a  simple  but  affecting  story  of  the  pres- 
ence of  a  Friend  at  the  death-bed  of  an  Indian  chief 
in  New  Jersey.  This  Friend,  Thomas  Budd,  who  was 
one  of  the  proprietors,  spoke  to  the  dying  chieftain,  of 
God,  the  future  life,  and  the  broad  and  narrow  ways. 
The  Indian  answered :  "  It.  is  true,  it  is  so ;  .  .  .  there 
are  two  paths,  a  broad  and  a  [strait]  path;  the  worst 
and  the  greatest  number  go  in  the  broad,  the  best  and 
fewest  in  the  [strait]  path."  The  story  goes  on  to  tell 
how  the  kindly  feeling  of  the  Friends  for  the  old  In- 
dian was  shown  after  his  death :  "  This  king  dying 
soon  afterwards,  was  attended  to  his  grave  in  the 
Quakers  burial  place  in  Burlington,  with  solemnity  by 
the  Indians  in  their  manner,  and  with  great  respect  by 
many  of  the  English  settlers ;  to  whom  he  had  been  a 
sure  friend."^ 

So  the  friendly  feeling  between  Quaker  and  Indian 
was  early  sealed  in  life  and  in  death.  Within  a  score 
of  years  after  the  first  Friends  landed  in  America 
(1656),  not  only  had  they  on  many  occasions  preached 
the  Gospel  to  the  Indians,  as  recounted  in  an  earlier 
chapter,  but  by  an  interchange  of  kindly  deeds  had 
laid  deep  foundations  for  a  permanent  relation  of 
peace  and  good-will. 

The  land  policy  of  Friends  in  their  dealings  with 
the  Indians  was  of  paramount  importance.  As  has 
been  stated  already  there  was  plenty  of  precedent  for 
the  practice  of  purchasing  lands  from  the  native  oc- 
cupants, and  since  it  usually  required  no  great  amount 
of  merchandise  and  trinkets  to  satisfy  the  Indians,  this 

7  Smith,  Hist,  of  New  Jersey,  149-150.  See  also  Journal  of 
Friends'  Historical  Society,  London,  9   (1912):    164-166. 


44  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

policy  seemed  to  be  dictated  both  by  justice  and  wis- 
dom. The  distinguishing  virtue  of  Friends  would 
seem  to  lie  in  the  thorough  and  fair  manner  in  which 
they  carried  out  this  policy. 

Friends  settled  in  many  of  the  colonies  long  after 
the  land  had  been  acquired  from  the  Indians.  In  West 
Jersey  and  Pennsylvania,  however,  they  occupied  large 
tracts  for  the  first  time  and  were  also  masters  of  the 
public  policy.  Friends  had  long  wished  to  plant  a 
colony  in  America,  when  by  a  series  of  fortunate  events 
(1674-1676)  a  group  of  Quakers,  including  William 
Penn,  came  into  control  of  West  Nev/  Jersey.  The 
activity  of  Friends  in  this  province  was  in  many  re- 
spects an  introduction  to  the  broader  activity  in  Penn- 
sylvania later,  and  Quaker  history  in  the  two  places 
is  always  directly  connected  because  from  that  time 
until  the  present,  one  yearly  meeting  has  covered  the 
whole  field. 

The  famous  body  of  "  Concessions  and  Agreements  " 
(1676),  the  charter  of  liberties  of  the  early  settlers  of 
West  Jersey  was  probably  in  large  measure  the  work 
of  William  Penn,  and  the  clause  relating  to  the  pur- 
chase of  land  from  the  Indians  was  a  fitting  prelude 
to  the  later  policy  of  Friends : 

"  It  is  agreed,  when  any  land  is  to  be  taken  up  for 
settlements  of  towns,  or  otherways,  before  it  be  sur- 
veyed, the  commissioners  or  the  major  part  of  them, 
are  to  appoint  some  persons  to  go  to  the  chief  of  the 
natives  concerned  in  that  land,  so  intended  to  be  taken 
up,  to  acquaint  the  natives  of  their  intentions,  and  to 
give  the  natives  what  present  they  shall  agree  upon, 
for  their  good  will  or  consent ;  and  take  a  grant  of  the 
same  in  writing,  under  their  hands  and  seals,  or  some 


PRACTICE.  45 

Other  pu'blick  way  used  in  those  parts  of  the  world : 
Which  grant  is  to  be  registered  in  the  puhHck  register, 
allowing  also  the  natives  (if  they  please)  a  copy 
thereof ;  and  that  no  person  or  persons  take  up  any 
land,  but  by  order  from  the  commissioners,  for  the 
time  being."^ 

This  quotation  epitomizes  the  land  policy  of  Friends 
in  West  Jersey.  When  the  large  company  of  Quaker 
settlers  came  over  in  the  ship  Kent  in  1677  they  put 
the  above  agreement  into  faithful  practice.  One  pur- 
chase after  another,  from  one  creek  to  the  next  along 
the  east  shore  of  the  Delaware  River,  was  made  from 
the  friendly  Indians,  and  when  the  supply  of  trading 
goods  ran  low  the  Friends  made  a  partial  payment  on 
a  further  tract  and  agreed  not  to  settle  on  it  until  the 
balance  was  paid. 

Friends  were  also  in  control  of  East  New  Jersey  for 
a  few  years,  and  Robert  Barclay,  the  great  Quaker 
apologist,  was  governor  of  the  province.  Again  the 
rights  of  the  Indians  were  not  forgotten  and  when 
Barclay  sent  Gawen  Lawrie  out  as  deputy  governor  to 
the  province  in  1684  there  was  a  clause  in  his  Instruc- 
tions providing  for  the  purchase  of  land  from  the  In- 
dians.^ 

The  price  of  the  early  land  purchases  seems  as  noth- 
ing now  but  it  was  a  fair  price  in  those  days  in  the 
minds  of  both  parties.  It  took  centuries  for  the  white 
people  themselves  to  learn  the  value  of  lands  in  Amer- 
ica, and  the  recent  policy  of  conservation  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States  government  is  merely  the  latest 

8  N.  J,  Archives  (ist  series),  i  :  259-260.  Smith,  Hist,  of  N.  J., 
533- 

9  N.  J.  Archives  (ist  series),  i  :  260,  461.  Smith,  Hist,  of  N.  J., 
94-98.    Jones,  Quakers  in  Amer.  Cols.,  367. 


X 


46  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

phase  of  a  long  process  of  awakening  to  real  and  poten- 
tial values.  The  sum  paid  to  Napoleon  for  the  vast 
Louisiana  tract,  or  that  paid  to  Russia  for  Alaska 
seems  fully  as  ridiculous  to-day  as  the  collection  of 
merchandise  and  trinkets  paid  for  Indian  lands  in  the 
earlier  days.  Matchcoats,  guns,  kettles,  clothing,  lead, 
powder,  knives,  axes,  tobacco-tongs,  pipes,  scissors, 
looking-glasses,  awl-blades,  fish-hooks,  red  paint, 
needles,  bells,  Jews-harps,  and  rum^*^ — these  were  the 
currency  that  Friends  paid  for  New  Jersey  town- 
sites,  and  that  other  white  people  paid  for  Indian  lands 
in  various  colonies  in  the  early  day,  and  if  the  bargain 
was  fairly  made  the  Indians  returned  to  their  wigwams 
satisfied. 

It  was  fitting  that  Friends  should  be  present  on  be- 
half of  the  natives  at  the  treaty  of  Easton^^  in  1758 
when  the  Indians  bartered  away  their  last  lands  in 
New  Jersey,  for  the  sum  of  one  thousand  pounds  and 
the  further  consideration  that  a  tract  of  land  contain- 
ing about  3,0(X)  acres  should  be  held  in  trust  for  their 
occupancy. ^2  It  would  seem  that  the  idea  of  this  trans- 
action had  been  suggested  by  an  organization  of 
Friends  known  as  "The  New  Jersey  Association  for 
Helping  the  Indians,"  organized  the  year  before.  The 
preamble  of  the  constitution  of  this  organization  set 
forth  the  kindness  shown  by  the  New  Jersey  Indians 
to  the  early  settlers,  and  the  first  article  provided, 
"That  a  tract  of  about  Two  Thousand  acres  of  the 
best  land  that  can  be  got,  nigh  or  adjoining  the  Bar- 

10  On   the   practice    of  giving   rum   to   the   Indians   see  below, 
pp.  53-54. 

11  See  below,  p.  78. 

12  This  tract  was  probably  the  first  Indian  reservation,  prop- 
erly so-called,  within  the  bounds  of  the  United  States. 


PRACTICE. 


47 


rens  ...  be  purchased  as  soon  as  conveniently  may 
be  after  the  subscriptions  are  completed,"  and  be  set 
aside  for  occupation  by  the  Indians  without  charge  to 
them.  The  names  of  nineteen  members  with  the 
amount  of  their  contributions  were  subscribed  to  the 
constitution,  the  list  containing  the  notable  name  of 
John  Woolman  with  a  subscription  of  six  pounds.  No 
further  records  of  the  Association  have  been  found 
and  it  was  probably  dropped  by  Friends  because  they 
were  able  to  get  their  plan  incorporated  in  the  public 
policy  the  next  year  as  has  been  described.^^ 

Thus  Friends  helped  to  inaugurate  and  carry  out 
the  Indian  land  policy  of  the  province  of  New  Jersey, 
than  which  no  other  American  colony  or  common- 
wealth, not  Pennsylvania  herself,  has  a  finer  record. 
While  a  few  minor  troubles  with  the  Indians  occurred 
in  New  Jersey  during  colonial  times,  not  an  Indian 
war  stains  the  pages  of  her  history,  and  when  the 
state  settled  the  last  claim  of  its  aboriginal  inhabitants 
in  1832  the  benedictions  of  Heaven  were  invoked  upon 
the  state  by  the  Indian  representative.^* 

The  record  of  land  purchases  in  Pennsylvania  is  too 
well  known  to  require  a  detailed  account  in  this  place. 
The  success  of  Penn's  experiment  in  New  Jersey 
naturally  led  him  to  adopt  the  same  policy  in  Penn- 
sylvania, and  he  also  received  sound  advice  to  the  same 
effect  from  the  English  authorities.    In  a  letter  of  1683 

13  On  the  New  Jersey  Association  see  Allinson,  Fragmentary 
Hist,  of  the  New  Jersey  Indians,  33-36.  (In  Proceedings  of  N.  J. 
Hist.  Soc,  26.  Series,  4:   33-50.) 

1*  This  was  a  claim  for  some  old  fishing  rights.  See  the  af- 
fecting account  in  Allinson,  Fragmentary  Hist,  of  New  Jersey 
Indians,  49-50.  (In  Proceedings  of  N.  J.  Hist.  Soc,  2d  Series, 
4:  33-50.) 


48  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

to  the  committee  of  the  Privy  Council  having  charge 
of  foreign  plantations  Penn  wrote :  "  I  have  followed 
the  Bishop  of  London's  counsel,  by  buying,  and  not 
taking  away,  the  natives'  land."^^ 

Thus  the  process  inaugurated  in  New  Jersey,  on  the 
eastern  shore  of  the  Delaware  River,  was  reenacted 
along  the  west  bank  of  the  same  stream.    From  creek 
to  creek  Penn  purchased  successive  strips  of  land  in 
the  years  following  1682,  so  that  three  years  later  he 
could  write :  "  I  have  made  seven  Purchases  from  the 
Indians,  and  in  Pay  and  Presents  they  have  received 
at  least  twelve  hundred  pounds  of  me."^^    The  deeds 
of  these  purchases  and  those  of  later  years  are  pre- 
served in  the  official  records  of  early  Pennsylvania. 
Similarly  are   found  notices  of  continued   efforts  to 
settle  all  land  disputes  between  the  Indians  and  indi- 
vidual settlers.    Law  after  law  was  passed  to  prevent 
individual  whites  from  making  private  land  purchases 
;    of  the  Indians,  or  from  encroaching  on  unpurchased 
^    territory.      Many   of   the   official   purchases   had   ill- 
I    defined  boundaries  so  that  they  overlapped,  and  por- 
tions of  them  were  paid  for  more  than  once,  perhaps 
I   several  times.     The  claims  of  the  Iroquois  in  New 
\  York  were  also  remembered  since  they  were  the  con- 
1  querors  and  over-lords  of  the  Indians  in  eastern  Penn- 
I  sylvania.    They,  too,  were  paid  for  the  same  lands  that 
I  were  purchased  from  the  Delawares.    In  treaty  after 
I  treaty,  in  council  after  council,  in  the  earlier  and  later 
years  of  the  province  the  Indians  referred  to  the  early 

15  This  bishop  was  Henry  Compton,  himself  a  member  of  the 
Privy  Council.  He  was  much  interested  in  colonial  affairs  and  a 
few  years  later  was  appointed  on  the  "  Committee  for  Trade  and 
Plantations."     See  A'^.  Y.  Colonial  Docs.,  3  :  572. 

16  Myers,  Narrs.  of  Early  Penna.,  276. 


PRACTICE.  49 

land  purchases  and  other  fair  deahngs  of  their  friend 
"  Onas  "  as  they  called  William  Penn,  and  showed  to 
their  younger  generations  the  belts  of  wampum  that 
ratified  the  early  treaties.^^ 

The  antithesis  of  William  Penn's  policy  in  land  pur- 
chases is  found  in  the  dealings  of  some  of  the  later 
proprietors  after  his  death.  The  greatest  example  of 
this  perfidy  was  the  infamous  Walking  Purchase  of 
1737  which  carried  the  province  of  William  Penn  far 
on  its  course  toward  that  rupture  with  the  natives 
which  resulted  in  a  frontier  war  less  than  a  score  of 
years  thereafter. 

Thomas  Penn,  who  left  the  Society  of  Friends,  was 
managing  proprietor  of  Pennsylvania  at  the  time  of 
the  Walking  Purchase  and  he  must  bear  the  odium  of 
the  transaction.  An  old  deed  of  1686,  itself  of  doubt- 
ful authenticity,  was  produced  which  conveyed  to-  Wil- 
liam Penn  certain  lands  in  eastern  Pennsylvania  for 
the  distance  that  a  man  could  walk  in  a  day  and  a  half. 
In  1686  this  probably  would  have  meant  about  thirty 
miles,  but  in  1737  this  distance  was  more  than  doubled 
by  two  young  men  trained  for  the  purpose,  traveling 
in  a  path  that  had  been  cleared  for  them.  Thus  the 
boundary  of  the  alleged  purchase  was  extended  to  in- 
clude some  coveted  lands  within  the  fork  of  the  Dela- 
ware and  Lehigh  rivers,  then  occupied  by  a  tribe  of 
Delaware  Indians.  These  Indians  realized  the  in- 
iquity of  the  proceeding  and  refused  to  move  from 
their  homes.  Then,  heaping  insult  upon  injury,  the 
executive  authorities  of  the  province,  since  the  Quaker 
assembly  refused  funds  to  enforce  such  a  bargain, 
called  in  the  Iroquois  masters  of  the  Delawares.    By 

17  For  authorities  see  bibliography  at  end  of  Chapter  IV. 


50  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

bribing  and  cajoling  these  over-lords  the  authorities 
succeeded  (1742)  in  persuading  them  to  order  the 
subject  tribe  to  abandon  its  old  home.  This  the  sub- 
missive Delawares  did,  but  in  their  sullen  breasts 
smouldered  from  this  time  forward  a  fire  that  a  few 
years  later  was  to  sweep  the  Pennsylvania  border. 

The  outbreak  did  not  occur  until  1755,  and  it  was 
precipitated  by  a  crowning  act  of  injustice  of  the  pre- 
ceding year.  In  1754  the  sons  of  William  Penn  de- 
cided once  for  all  to  clear  western  Pennsylvania  of  all 
Indian  claims.  At  a  council  held  at  Albany,  New 
York,  which  was  not  fully  representative  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Indians  nor  of  the  Six  Nations,  almost  the 
whole  western  half  of  Pennsylvania  was  bargained 
away  by  the  Indians  present.  Some  of  them  did  not 
understand  fully  the  reasons  for  nor  the  extent  of  the 
treaty,  and  others  seem  to  have  been  privately  influ- 
enced to  sign  the  deed.  The  effect  of  this  affair  on 
the  tribes  concerned  was  swift  and  decisive.^^  The 
outbreak  of  the  next  year,  to  be  discussed  later,  was 
the  result  of  a  far  departure  from  the  policy  of  the 
founder  of  the  province.  His  justice  the  savages  did 
not  forget.  His  memory  they  ever  held  in  loving  re- 
membrance. His  policy  in  the  purchase  of  lands  and 
the  effect  of  it  on  the  native  occupants  has  been  tersely 
summed  up  by  a  historian  of  Pennsylvania :  "  What 
seems  to  have  impressed  the  Indians  was  the  fact  that 
Penn  insisted  on  purchase  at  the  first  and  all  subse- 
quent proceedings  as  being  an  act  of  justice,  to  which 
both  parties  were  to  give  their  assent  voluntarily. 
They  also  felt  that  the  price  paid  was  ample  to  extin- 
guish their  claims,  and  that  no  advantages  were  taken 

18  For  authorities  see  bibliography  at  end  of  Chapter  IV. 


PRACTICE.  51 

by  plying  them  with  drink  or  cheating  them  with  false 
maps.  The  treaties  were  open  and  honorable  con- 
tracts, and  not  characterized  by  sharpness  or  chicanery. 
As  the  Indians  reflected  on  them  at  their  leisure  they 
saw  nothing  to  repent  of,  and  everything  to  admire  in 
the  conduct  of  Penn  and  his  friends,  and  they  pre- 
served inviolably  the  terms  to  which  they  had  solemnly 
agreed. "^^ 

While  Friends  had  a  better  opportunity  in  New 
Jersey  and  Pennsylvania  than  elsewhere  to  carry  out 
their  policies,  there  is  scattering  evidence  extant  to 
show  that  in  other  places  they  made  efforts  to  the  same 
end.  At  an  early  date  (1738)  Thomas  Chalkley  had 
urged  Friends  at  Opequan  (Hopewell),  in  Virginia, 
to  purchase  their  lands  from  the  Indians  because  "  they 
have  a  natural  right  thereto  in  justice  and  equity;  and 
no  people  .  .  .  according  to  our  own  principle,  which 
is  according  to  the  glorious  Gospel  of  our  dear  and 
holy  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  ought  to  take  away  or  settle 
on  other  men's  land."  The  case  of  these  Friends,  who 
had  settled  on  the  western  side  of  the  mountains  on 
lands  for  which  the  Indian  title  was  uncertain,  was 
agitated  for  over  fifty  years.  The  Philadelphia  Meet- 
ing for  Sufferings  corresponded  with  Virginia  Friends 
about  it  and  the  Friends  at  Hopewell  seem  to  have 
done  what  they  could  in  the  matter  though  perhaps 
tardily.  In  1765  Hopewell  Monthly  Meeting  refused 
to  give  certificates  of  removal  to  its  members  until  it 
was  ascertained  that  the  site  to  which  they  wished  to 

19  Sharpless,  A  Quaker  Experiment,  i  :  159-160.  For  an  ex- 
tensive account  of  the  Walking  Purchase  see  W.  J.  Buck,  His- 
tory of  the  Indian  Walk  (1886).  An  interesting  recent  account 
by  W.  W.  Dewees  is  in  the  Bulletin  of  Friends'  Historical  So- 
ciety (Phila.),  Vol.  4  (1912):   124-132. 


52  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

remove  had  been  fairly  purchased  from  the  natives. 
In  1778  Friends  at  Hopewell  raised  a  fund  to  pay  the 
original  owners  of  their  land  if  they  could  be  found, 
"  and  if  not,  for  the  benefit  of  such  other  Indians  as 
may  require  brotherly  compassion  in  the  manner  best 
Wisdom  may  point  out."  The  matter  was  settled 
about  sixteen  years  later  through  the  agency  of  Phila- 
delphia Friends  by  a  gift  to  the  Tuscarora  Indians, 
then  residing  in  New  York,  although  their  claim  to  the 
Virginia  lands  was  somewhat  doubtful.^^ 

It  would  seem  that  when  the  Indian  war  broke  out 
in  Pennsylvania  in  1755  the  Friends  of  Philadelphia 
were  aroused  as  never  before  on  the  subject  of  Indian 
land  purchases,  and  by  correspondence  they  urged 
their  fellow  members,  especially  in  the  southern  states, 
to  be  true  to  the  principles  of  the  Society  in  that  re- 
spect.^^  Probably  as  a  result  of  this  renewed  agita- 
tion Friends  at  New  Garden,  North  Carolina,  at- 
tempted through  a  Monthly  Meeting  committee  ap- 
pointed in  1764,  to  discover  whether  there  could  be 
any  Indian  claim  against  the  lands  on  which  they 
lived.  The  committee  could  learn  only  of  a  slight 
remnant  of  the  original  occupants,  the  Cheraws,  then 
living  with  another  tribe,  and  as  the  claim  was  uncer- 
tain and  affairs  "  seemed  somewhat  unsettled "  the 
matter  was  dropped.^^ 

A  similar  case  in  the  south  was  under  discussion  for 
several  years  following  1787  when  some  Friends  were 

20  Chalkley,  Works  (edn.  1790),  317-319.  Conduct  of  Friends, 
iio-iii.  Weeks,  Southern  Quakers,  99,  note.  Janney,  Hist,  of 
Friends,  266,  267,  440-441. 

21  The  Friend,  Phila.,  46  (1873)  :  187. 

22  MS.  Minutes  of  New  Garden  Mo.  Mtg.,  2d  mo.  and  4  mo., 
1764.    Weeks,  So.  Quakers,  107,  note. 


PRACTICE.  63 

under  discipline  in  North  Carolina  for  occupying  lands 
in  eastern  Tennessee  for  which  the  title  was  not  clear. 
These  Friends  were  forbidden  (apparently  without 
effect)  to  hold  meetings  and  were  under  discipline 
from  their  monthly  and  quarterly  meetings  and  the 
yearly  meeting  in  North  Carolina.  The  pioneers 
claimed  that  their  lands  had  been  fairly  purchased  and 
finally  the  whole  question  in  dispute  was  settled  by 
negotiations  between  the  Indians  and  the  government 
of  the  United  States. ^^ 

These  examples  are  scattered  and  the  records  in- 
complete and  unsatisfactory,  but  they  may  serve  to 
show  at  least  that  efforts  were  made  by  Friends  in 
various  colonies  to  follow  the  good  example  of  those 
in  New  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania  in  the  important 
matter  of  land  purchases  from  the  Indians. 

Other  efforts  of  Friends  to  incline  the  Indians  to 
Christianity  "by  just  and  lenient  measures"  must  be 
briefly  summarized.  In  the  first  instance  must  be 
noticed,  however,  the  practice  of  giving  rum  to  the 
Indians  as  a  part  of  the  payment  in  land  purchases. 
The  only  record  of  this  being  practiced  by  Friends  is 
in  the  earliest  land  purchases  in  New  Jersey  and  Penn- 
sylvania. It  seems  to  have  been  discontinued  when 
the  demoralizing  effect  on  the  Indians  became  evident. 
There  was  practically  no  sentiment  among  Christians 
at  that  time  against  a  moderate  use  of  liquor,  and  in 
1701  we  find  William  Penn  at  an  Indian  conference 
distributing  drink  to  the  Indians,  yet  not  in  large  quan- 
tities, but  as  a  beverage  to  be  consumed  on  the  spot.^* 

23  MS.  Minutes  of  Western  and  New  Garden  Quarterly  Meet- 
ings, and  New  Garden  Mo.  Mtg.,  1 787-1 791,  and  of  North  Caro- 
lina Y.  M.,  1791  ;  also  Weeks,  So.  Quakers,  252. 

2*  Life  of  John  Richardson  (1783),  134. 
5 


54  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

Yet  throughout  Pennsylvania  history  during  the 
Quaker  regime  there  were  determined  efforts  made  by 
the  authorities  to  stop  the  rum  traffic  among  the  In- 
dians. During  the  same  period  there  is  no  one  phase 
of  Indian  concerns  that  so  occupied  the  attention  of 
Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  as  this  one.  Over  and 
over  again  members  v^ere  cautioned  and  warned 
against  having  any  part  in  the  business  of  supplying 
liquors  to  the  Indians.  In  1687  a  long  and  earnest 
minute  on  the  subject  was  adopted  and  by  way  of 
bringing  the  matter  home  to  every  member  the  advice 
was  closed  in  the  following  words :  "  We  advise  that 
this  Our  Testimony  may  be  Entered  in  Every  Monthly 
Meeting  Book,  and  Every  Friend  belonging  to  the  Said 
Meeting  to  Subscribe  the  Same."^^ 

Such  was  the  attitude  of  Friends  in  Pennsylvania 
and  New  Jersey,  and  an  interesting  example  in  another 
part  of  the  country  was  the  law  passed  in  South  Caro- 
lina early  in  the  regime  of  the  Quaker  governor,  John 
Archdale :  "  It  is  enacted  that  every  person  which  shall 
give,  or  any  other  way  dispose  of  any  rum  or  brandy, 
or  any  sorte  of  spirrits  to  any  Indian  or  Indians  .  .  . 
shall  forfeit  for  every  time  he  shall  dispose  of  any 
such  liquors  as  aforesaid  the  summe  of  twenty 
pounds."^^ 

In  Pennsylvania  there  was  need  of  restricting  other 
trade  with  the  Indians  besides  that  in  rum,  and  so  a 
supervision  was  kept  over  traders  to  the  end  that  the 

25  Several  other  extracts  from  Minutes  given  by  Sharpless  in 
Jones,  Quakers  in  American  Colonies,  499-500.  For  the  public 
policy  in  Penna.  see  Sharpless,  Quaker  Experiment,  i  :  165-169, 
171-172.  For  reference  to  source  materials  see  Penna.  Records 
and  Archives  (ist  series),  Index  volume,  under  "Indians"  and 
*'  Rum." 

26  Jones,  Quakers  in  Amer.  Cols.,  247. 


PRACTICE.  55 

Indians  might  not  be  defrauded  and  thus  cause  be 
given  for  ill-will  between  the  two  races.  One  of  the 
finest  examples  of  the  integrity  of  William  Penn  has 
come  to  light  in  this  connection  in  a  private  letter 
written  by  him  to  a  friend  in  1681  :  "I  did  refuse  a 
great  temptation  last  second  day,  which  was  six  thou- 
sand pounds  .  .  .  and  make  the  purchasers  a  com- 
pany, to  have  wholly  to  itself  the  Indian  trade  from 
south  to  north,  between  the  Susquehannah  and  Dela- 
ware rivers,  paying  me  two  and  a  half  per  cent,  ac- 
knowledgment or  rent :  but  as  the  Lord  gave  it  to  me 
over  all  and  great  opposition  ...  I  would  not  abuse 
his  love,  nor  act  unworthy  of  his  providence,  and  so 
defile  what  came  to  me  clean. "^^ 

In  the  adjustment  of  civil  disputes  between  the 
whites  and  the  Indians  great  efforts  were  made  by 
Friends  to  secure  justice  for  the  natives.  In  New 
Jersey  and  Pennsylvania  under  the  Quaker  regime 
the  experiment  was  tried  of  having  mixed  juries  of 
whites  and  Indians,  and  an  order  to  the  same  effect 
was  issued  in  Rhode  Island  by  the  Quaker  Governor, 
Nicholas  Easton.  The  success  of  such  experiments 
did  not  seem  to  warrant  their  long  continuance,  but 
they  are  typical  of  an  extended  list  of  efforts  on  the 
part  of  Friends  to  secure  justice  and  fair  play  for  the 
natives.^® 

27  Letter  to  Robert  Turner,  in  Memoirs  of  Hist.  Soc.  of  Penna, 
(edn.   1864),   I  :  212. 

28  N.  J.  Archives  (ist  series),  i  :  259.  Jones,  Quakers  in  Amer- 
ican Cols.,  175,  note,  402.  Sharpless,  Quaker  Experiment,  i  :  158, 
165,  170-172.  Proud,  Hist,  of  Penna.,  2:  146—149.  A  more  prac- 
tical plan  was  inaugurated  under  Governor  Archdale  in  South 
Carolina,  by  which  the  Governor  and  one  member  of  the  Council 
should  judge  disputes  between  Indians  or  between  whites  and 
Indians.     See  Statutes  of  S.  C,  2:  109. 


56  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

One  of  the  darkest  pages  in  American  colonial  his- 
tory tells  of  the  enslavement  of  the  native  inhabitants 
of  the  country.  While  the  number  of  Indian  slaves 
was  always  much  smaller  than  that  of  negroes  yet  it 
was  larger  than  readers  of  American  history  usually 
suppose.  A  report  of  1708  placed  the  number  of  In- 
dian slaves  in  the  Carolinas  at  1,400.  In  1730  the 
population  of  South  Kingston,  Rhode  Island,  included 
935  whites,  333  negroes  and  223  Indian  slaves.  These 
figures  probably  represent  extreme  cases  but  it  is  evi- 
dent from  recent  historical  research  that  in  all  of  the 
English  colonies  in  America  the  enslavement  of  In- 
dians was  practised  to  some  extent.  The  system  of 
Indian  slavery  existed  most  extensively  in  the  South, 
quite  largely  in  New  England,  and  least  of  all  in  the 
middle  colonies. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that  Christian  people  as  a 
rule  had  no  scruples  about  slavery  during  the  time  of 
American  colonial  history.  The  radical  sentiment 
among  Friends  that  resulted  in  the  manumission  of 
their  slaves  did  not  develop  greatly  until  after  1750. 

Yet  it  is  evident  that  prior  to  that  time  there  was 
some  sentiment  among  Friends  against  the  enslave- 
ment of  Indians.  Following  King  Philip's  War 
(1675-1676)  many  Indian  captives  were  sold  into 
slavery.  The  government  of  Rhode  Island  was  in  the 
hands  of  Friends  at  this  period  and  it  is  evident  that 
the  treatment  of  captive  Indians  was  less  severe  there 
than  in  most  of  the  other  New  England  colonies.  By 
a  vote  of  the  General  Assembly  in  1676  it  was  ordered 
that  "  noe  Indian  in  this  Colony  be  a  slave,  but  only  to 
pay  their  debts  or  for  their  bringing  up,  or  custody 


PRACTICE.  67 

they  have  received,  or  to  performe  covenant  as  if  they 
had  been  countrymen  not  in  warr."^^ 

Just  what  some  of  these  exceptions  meant  at  the 
time,  it  is  difficult  to  say  but  it  is  apparent  that  the  en- 
slavement of  Indians  was  considerably  limited.  This 
interpretation  is  borne  out  by  the  action  of  the  town 
of  Providence  a  few  months  later  in  disposing  of  a 
number  of  Indian  captives  by  "  involuntary  indenture  " 
for  a  period  of  nine  years.  This  would  not  be  con- 
sidered slavery  in  the  strict  meaning  of  the  word 
which  would  involve  indenture  for  life.  It  was  cus- 
tomary at  the  time  to  sell  even  white  people  into  tem- 
porary servitude  as  a  punishment  for  crime. 

Various  other  restrictions  on  the  buying,  selling  or 
holding  of  Indian  slaves  make  it  appear  that  the 
Quaker  influence  in  Rhode  Island  at  least  mitigated 
this  crime  against  the  native  inhabitants. 

Throughout  the  early  period  of  Pennsylvania  his- 
tory (1681-1755)  there  were  no  Indian  wars  and 
hence  no  Indian  captives  were  available  for  enslave- 
ment. It  is  clear,  however,  that  Indian  slaves  were 
imported  from  other  colonies,  as  the  early  newspapers 
contain  accounts  of  their  being  bought  and  sold. 

As  the  Friendly  testimony  against  slavery  developed, 
Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  began  to  take  action 
against  the  trade  in  Indian  slaves.  In  1709  a  clause 
was  placed  in  the  Discipline  prohibiting  members  from 
purchasing  Indian  slaves.  In  1719  at  the  close  of  a 
Minute  directed  against  the  sale  of  rum  to  the  Indians 
the  Yearly  Meeting  directed  that  "to  avoid  giving 

29  Records  of  the  Colony  of  Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plan- 
tations, 2:  534-535. 


58  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

them  Occasion  of  Discontent,  it  is  desired  that  Friends 
do  not  buy  or  sell  Indian  Slaves. "^^ 

In  later  years  as  the  sentiment  against  slavery  in- 
creased among  Friends  the  general  testimony  against 
the  system  included  of  course  Indian  slavery  and  the 
records  sometimes  read  "  negroes  and  other  slaves. "^^ 

During  the  administration  of  the  Quaker  governor, 
John  Archdale,  in  South  Carolina,  a  tribe  of  Indians 
under  his  jurisdiction  captured  some  Florida  Indians 
and  prepared  to  sell  them  into  slavery.  Archdale  for- 
bade the  transaction  and  secured  the  safe  return  of 
the  Indians  to  Florida.  A  little  later  an  English  ship 
was  cast  away  on  the  Florida  coast  among  barbarous 
Indians,  but  the  survivors,  including  two  travehng 
Friends,  Robert  Barrow  and  Edward  Wardell,  were 
offered  no  harm  and  finally  made  their  way  to  St. 
Augustine.  Archdale  attributes  their  escape  to  the 
kindly  feeling  between  Carolina  and  Florida,  and  their 
respective  Indian  tribes,  which  was  the  outgrowth  of 
his  earlier  act.^^ 

So  while  slavery  in  general  was  not  condemned  by 
Christian  people  during  the  early  colonial  period,  and 
while  Indian  slavery  was  not  widespread  enough  to  be 
an  outstanding  evil  at  the  time,  yet  it  is  evident  that  on 
due  occasion  the  practice  was  mitigated  or  curtailed 
by  those  who  at  a  later  period  were  to  lead  in  the 
crusade  against  negro  slavery. 

30  MS.  Minutes  of  Phila.  Y.  M.,  1709  and  1719. 

31  Much  of  the  above  material  on  Indian  slavery  has  been 
gathered  from  A.  W.  "LzvihtT,  Indian  Slavery  in  Colonial  Times,  106, 
no,  116,  128-130,  151-152,  308.  — The  MmMf^j  of  Virginia  Yearly 
Meeting  and  of  the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  mention  aid  given  to 
Indians,  1813  to  181 5,  in  securing  their  release,  through  judicial 
action,  from  a  state  of  slavery. 

^2  Hist.  Collections  of  S.  C,  2:  108. 


PRACTICE.  59 

In  the  ways  outlined  above  Friends  sought  in  their 
dealings  with  the  Indians  to  put  the  Christian  pre- 
cepts into  practice.  By  purchasing  lands  fairly  from 
the  native  occupants,  by  restricting  the  sale  of  rum 
and  safe-guarding  other  trade  so  as  to  prevent  fraud, 
by  dealing  out  as  nearly  as  possible  even  justice  to  In- 
dians and  whites  in  civil  disputes,  by  raising  their 
voices  against  the  infamy  of  Indian  slavery, — by  such 
means  the  early  Friends  sought  to  carry  out  William 
Penn's  benevolent  design  of  converting  the  Indians  to 
Christianity  "by  just  and  lenient  measures." 

The  success  of  this  policy  of  peace  and  good-will 
may  be  next  discussed  as  a  fitting  conclusion  to  the 
story  of  Friends'  activities  among  the  Indians  in  the 
early  period. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   NOTE. 

For  bibliography  covering  this  chapter  see  Bibliograph- 
ical Note  at  close  of  Chapter  IV. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   QUAKER  PEACE. 

The  peace  principle  of  Friends  may  account  for 
their  dealings  with  the  Indians  as  already  narrated,  or 
the  peace  may  be  looked  upon  as  resultant  of  the 
kindly  practice  of  Friends  in  their  dealings  with  the 
Indians,  or  the  peace  policy  may  be  regarded  as  one 
great  phase  of  that  practice.  Viewed  from  any  stand- 
point the  policy  of  peace  and  good-will  was  a  definite 
purpose  of  Friends  from  the  beginning,  and  in  it  they 
attained  a  notable  measure  of  success. 

In  New  Jersey,  Rhode  Island,  the  Carolinas,  and 
Pennsylvania,  Friends  wielded  political  influence  in 
varying  degrees  for  a  period  of  time.  In  all  the  col- 
onies they  could  use  the  ordinary  influence  of  private 
citizens. 

In  New  Jersey,  as  has  been  narrated,  they  were  in 
poHtical  control  for  a  few  years,  and  thereafter  they 
continued  to  be  influential  in  shaping  the  Indian  policy 
of  the  province.  Thus  they  helped  to  inaugurate  and 
carry  out  a  policy  which,  before  the  end  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century,  had  solved  the  Indian  problem  and 
saved  New  Jersey  from  the  horrors  of  Indian  war- 
fare.^ 

In  Rhode  Island  the  Quakers  did  not  come  into 
political  influence  early  enough  in  the  history  of  the 
colony  to  develop  an  Indian  Policy,  nor  were  they  ever 

1  See  above,  p.  47. 

60 


THE    QUAKER   PEACE.  61 

in  full  control  of  the  government.  In  the  latter  part 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  however,  several  Friends 
were  elected  to  the  governorship  and  to  other  high 
offices  in  the  colony,  and  it  so  happened  that  this  period 
of  political  influence  covered  the  time  of  King  Philip's 
War,  1 675-1676. 

This  was  a  war  between  the  New  England  colonies 
and  the  Indian  confederation  formed  by  King  Philip, 
and  the  Quaker  authorities  of  Rhode  Island  found 
themselves  drawn  into  it  much  against  their  will.  As 
the  war  was  coming  on,  however,  they  made  a  heroic 
effort  to  avert  it.  John  Easton,  the  Quaker  Deputy- 
Governor,  with  four  others  went  unarmed  among  the 
sullen  savages  at  King  Philip's  camp,  and  proposed  to 
the  Indians  that  all  differences  between  them  and  the 
whites  be  settled  by  arbitration.  King  Philip  recited 
the  grievances  of  the  Indians,  and  the  injustice  of  the 
whites,  and  doubted  the  willingness  of  the  other  New 
England  colonies  to  settle  the  things  in  dispute  fairly, 
as  proposed  by  Easton  and  his  companions.  The 
Rhode  Islanders  pleaded  all  day  for  arbitration  and 
although  they  and  the  Indians  "  sat  veri  friendly  to- 
gether "  the  peaceful  mission  was  unsuccessful. 

In  the  war  that  followed  the  Quakers  did  not  con- 
trol the  colony  entirely,  but  their  influence  was  great 
enough  to  develop  a  very  halting  war  policy,  much  to 
the  disgust  of  their  political  opponents  in  Rhode 
Island  and  in  the  other  New  England  colonies. 

It  was  at  the  close  of  this  war,  when  the  other  New 
England  colonies  were  selling  their  Indian  captives  as 
slaves  in  the  West  Indies  and  Morocco,  that  Rhode 
Island  passed  its  law  limiting  Indian  slavery  in  that 


62  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

colony.^  Moreover,  when  some  of  the  Indian  leaders 
were  brought  to  Newport  to  be  court-martialed  and 
shot,  the  three  Quakers  who  were  members  of  the 
court  seem  to  have  absented  themselves  at  that  time  on 
account  of  their  scruples  against  inflicting  the  death 
penalty.^ 

The  attitude  of  the  Friends  who  held  political  posi- 
tion at  this  time  was  apparently  dictated  largely  by 
their  genial  peace  principles.  They  had  no  voice  in 
developing  the  earlier  Indian  policy  of  New  England 
and  were  unsuccessful  in  their  efforts  to  avert  the 
war.  What  the  history  of  the  Indian  affairs  in  New 
England  would  have  been  if  a  peace  policy  had  been 
consistently  developed  from  the  beginning  must  be 
left  to  conjecture. 

When  Charles  II  granted  Pennsylvania  to  William 
Penn  in  1681  he  gave  to  the  proprietor  the  charter 
privilege  to  make  war  on  the  savages  and  to  pursue 
them  "  even  without  the  limits  of  the  said  province, 
and,  by  God's  assistance,  to  vanquish  and  take  them; 
and  being  taken,  to  put  them  to  death,  by  the  law  of 
war,  or  to  save  them,"  at  his  pleasure.  Oddly  enough 
sounds  this  plenary  grant  of  war  power  in  the  light  of 
history.  The  pleasure  of  the  great  proprietor  did  not 
require  that  clause  of  the  charter.  It  was  rather  ex- 
pressed in  the  first  message  sent  by  William  Penn  to 
the  Indians,  a  year  before  he  himself  could  cross  the 
ocean  to  sit  at  their  councils :  "  I  have  great  love  and 
regard  towards  you ;  and  desire  to  win  and  gain  your 
love  and  friendship,  by  a  kind,  just  and  peaceable  life ; 
...  I  have  sent  my  commissioners  to  treat  with  you 

2  See  above,  p.  56. 

3  Jones,  Quakers  in  Amer.  Cols.,  1 81-189. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  63 

about  land,  and  a  firm  league  of  peace;  let  me  desire 
you  to  be  kind  to  them,  and  the  people,  and  receive 
these  presents  and  tokens,  which  I  have  sent  you,  as  a 
testimony  of  my  good-will  to  you,  and  my  resolution 
to  live  justly,  peaceably  and  friendly  with  you." 

To  describe  in  detail  the  development  and  effect  of 
Penn's  peace  policy  with  the  Indians  would  be  to  relate 
a  large  part  of  the  early  history  of  Pennsylvania.  The 
story,  however,  may  be  succinctly  and  graphically  told 
by  exhibiting  some  brief  extracts  from  various  sources 
descriptive  of  the  relations  between  Friends  and  the 
Indians  during  the  seventy-five  years  of  the  Quaker 
regime. 

In  describing  the  Great  Treaty  of  Shackamaxon, 
held  in  1683,  Penn  writes :  "  When  the  Purchase  was 
agreed,  great  Promises  passed  between  us,  of  Kind- 
ness and  good  Neighborhood,  and  that  the  Indians 
and  English  must  live  in  Love  as  long  as  the  Sun  gave 
Light."  And  one  Indian  leader  declared  in  the  name 
of  all  the  assembled  chiefs,  "  that  many  Governors 
had  been  in  the  River,  but  that  no  Governor  had  come 
himself  to  live  and  stay  here  before;  and  having  now 
such  an  one  that  had  treated  them  well,  they  should 
never  do  him  or  his  any  wrong."* 

In  1712  some  Conestoga  Indians  came  to  Phila- 
delphia to  present  some  alleged  grievances  to  the 
provincial  Council.  Their  remembrance  of  William 
Penn's  attitude  and  their  readiness  to  continue  the 
kindly  relations  are  evident  in  their  statement :  "  That 
the  Proprietor,  Govr.  Penn  had  at  his  first  Coming 

4  The  Great  Treaty  was  long  thought  to  have  been  held  in  the 
fall  of  1682,  but  recently  historians  have  argued  reasonably  for 
the  later  date.  See  F.  D,  Stone,  Penn's  Treaty,  in  the  Penna. 
Mag.  of  Hist,  and  Biog.,  6:  217-238. 


64  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

amongst  them  made  an  agreement  with  them  that  they 
should  always  Live  as  friends  and  Brothers,  and  be 
as  one  Body,  one  heart,  one  mind,  and  as  one  Eye  and 
Ear;  that  what  the  one  saw  the  other  should  see,  and 
what  the  one  heard  the  other  should  hear,  and  that 
there  should  be  nothing  but  Love  and  friendship  be- 
tween them  and  us  (the  English)  forever.  .  .  .  On 
their  part  they  had  always  kept  up  to  this  Agreement, 
And  should  constantly  observe  it  in  all  respects ;  that 
if  anything  came  to  their  knowledge  relating  to  us 
they  would  always  like  brothers  and  friends  acquaint 
us  with  it."^ 

In  1720  James  Logan,  Secretary  of  the  Council  and 
long  time  friend  of  William  Penn  and  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania Indians,  reported  a  remarkable  interview  with 
the  natives  in  the  Susquehanna  valley.  One  tribe  had 
said  to  him :  "  That  William  Penn  made  a  League  with 
them  to  last  for  three  or  four  generations ;  That  he  is 
now  dead,  and  most  of  their  ancients  are  also  dead, 
but  the  League  still  remains,  and  they  now  take  this 
Opportunity  to  renew  and  strengthen  it  with  their 
ffriend,  who  has  always  represented  William  Penn  to 
them  since  he  left  them ;  One  Generation  may  die,  and 
another  may  die,  but  the  League  of  Friendship  con- 
tinues strong  and  shall  forever  continue  so  on  their 
part.  And  this  is  not  said  on  behalf  of  themselves, 
the  Mingoes  only,  but  of  all  the  Indians  on  the  River, 
And  they  gave  another  bundle  of  Deer  Skins." 

Another  tribe  at  the  same  council  declared :  "  That 
their  present  Chief  was  once  at  a  Council  with  William 
Penn  before  they  removed  into  this  province,  and  that 
since  they  came  into  it,  they  have  always  lived  quiet 

6  Colonial  Records,  2:  553. 


THE    QUAKER   PEACE. 


65 


and  in  Peace.  .  .  .  When  the  Sun  sets  they  sleep  in 
Peace,  and  in  Peace  they  rise  with  him,  and  so  con- 
tinue while  he  continues  his  course,  and  think  them- 
selves happy  in  their  Friendship,  which  they  shall  take 
Care   to  have   continued    from   Generation   to   Gen- 


eration." 


So  the  Indians  sat  in  council  with  the  friend  of 
William  Penn,  throwing  down  a  bundle  of  skins  as  a 
pledge  with  every  declaration  of  fidelity.  They  had 
not  forgotten  the  old  bond,  the  old  promise  of  the 
founder  that  he  and  they  should  be  "  as  one  Body,  one 
Blood,  one  Heart,  and  one  Head."  Such  were  their 
words  in  another  part  of  the  same  council,  words  fol- 
lowed by  the  declaration :  "  That  they  always  remem- 
bered this,  and  should  on  their  parts  act  accordingly ; 
That  few  of  the  old  men  who  were  at  those  Councils 
were  living ;  These  were  removed,  and  those  who  were 
then  very  young  are  now  grown  up  to  succeed,  but 
they  transmitted  it  to  their  Children,  and  they  and  all 
theirs  should  remember  it  forever."® 

At  a  council  in  1727  the  representatives  of  the  Five 
Nations  expressed  similar  sentiments  concerning  Wil- 
liam Penn  and  his  followers  and  "  the  Covenant  Chain 
and  the  Friendship  that  has  long  subsisted  between 
them,  and  'tis  This  they  desire  may  be  Kept  bright  and 
shining  to  the  Sun,  and  that  neither  Rain  nor  Damps 
nor  any  Rust  may  affect  it  to  deprive  it  of  its  Lustre ; 
And  that  the  Governour  and  his  People,  and  they  and 
their  People,  and  their  Children  and  our  Children 
may  ever  continue  as  they  have  hitherto  been,  one 
Body,  one  Heart  and  one  Blood  to  all  Generations."^ 

6  Colonial  Records,  3  :  93-94. 

7  Same,  3  :  274. 


66  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

Unhappily  for  Indian  and  white  man  the  old  cov- 
enant chain  was  soon  to  corrode  and  break.  Under 
the  sons  of  William  Penn  avarice  began  to  do  its 
wonted  work,  Friends  gradually  lost  control  of  the 
executive  policy  of  the  province,  and  outrages  upon 
the  good  faith  of  the  Indians  followed  one  another  in 
rapid  succession.  Germans  and  Scotch-Irish  were 
crowding  into  Pennsylvania  and  were  impatient  of 
the  Indian  land  claims  that  barred  the  western  fron- 
tier. The  infamous  land  steals  that  led  up  to  the  hos- 
tilities of  1755  have  been  described  in  the  preceding 
chapter.  The  story  of  the  troublous  years  that  fol- 
lowed need  be  told  here  only  as  it  illustrates  the  rela- 
tions between  Friends  and  the  Indians,  and  shows  that 
the  latter  distinguished  clearly  between  the  new  man- 
agement of  the  province  and  the  party  of  their  old 
friend  "  Onas "  that  had  now  lost  control  of  the 
provincial  policy. 

When  Braddock  was  defeated  in  1755  the  die  was 
cast  and  the  Indians  of  western  Pennsylvania  were  at 
one  with  the  French,  arrayed  against  the  English. 
Early  in  1756  the  governor  and  council  of  Pennsyl- 
vania declared  war  against  the  Indians  and  offered 
bounties  for  scalps.  The  Quaker  Peace  had  at  last 
given  way  to  war. 

Many  Friends  in  public  life,  influenced  by  the  war 
spirit  and  the  dangers  on  the  frontier,  came  to  feel 
that  a  defensive  war  at  least  in  this  instance  was  jus- 
tifiable. But  the  spiritual  leaders  of  the  Society  and 
the  official  utterances  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  were  all 
on  the  side  of  peace. 

Friends  in  England,  always  interested  in  the  wel- 
fare of  the  Indians  and  in  the  maintenance  of  the 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  67 

peace  "testimony,"  took  an  active  part  in  the  delib- 
erations that  preceded  the  final  decision.  Samuel 
Fothergill  and  other  English  Friends  traveling  in 
America  urged  the  peace  policy.  John  Hunt  and 
Christopher  Wilson  brought  to  America  the  official  ad- 
vice of  London  Yearly  Meeting  to  the  effect  that  those 
Friends  who  sat  in  the  Pennsylvania  Assembly  should 
resign  their  seats  if  the  public  demanded  a  war  policy. 
As  their  advice  coincided  with  the  decisions  of  Phila- 
delphia Yearly  Meeting  the  leading  Friends  in  the 
provincial  assembly  resigned  their  places  and  the  peace 
policy  of  William  Penn,  after  lasting  for  seventy-five 
years,  came  to  an  end. 

The  influence  of  Friends  was  however  merely  turned 
into  another  channel.  Refusing  to  pay  the  war  taxes 
they  agreed  to  contribute  to  the  cause  of  peace  "  more 
than  the  heaviest  taxes  of  a  war  can  be  expected  to 
require,"  and  they  proceeded  to  make  good  their  prom- 
ise through  the  work  of  the  Friendly  Association. 
The  provincial  authorities  sometimes  resented  the  self- 
appointed  activities  of  this  association,  but  not  so  the 
Indians.  They  knew  the  sincerity  of  the  Friends  and 
rightly  counted  on  them  as  faithful  to  the  covenants 
of  the  old  time  council  fires. 

The  Friendly  Association  expended  about  $25,000 
in  the  work  now  undertaken.  Its  representatives  gave 
presents  to  the  Indians,  advised  them  to  treat  for 
peace,  were  present  in  the  interests  of  the  Indians  and 
of  peace  at  various  treaty  councils,  and  finally  were 
rewarded  by  seeing  the  savages  bury  their  tomahawks 
and  return  to  their  wigwams  in  peace.* 

8  Sharpless,  Quaker  Experiment,  i  :  179-184.  For  other  au- 
thorities, including  sources,  see  bibliographical  note  below,  pp. 
83-88. 


68  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  immunity  of  the  lives  and  property  of  Friends 
from  Indian  depredation  during  this  war  will  be  men- 
tioned in  another  connection.  The  charge  that  Friends 
in  their  zeal  for  peace  were  callous  to  the  sufferings 
on  the  frontier  cannot  stand  in  the  face  of  the  follow- 
ing declaration  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  (1756), 
the  sincerity  of  which  will  never  be  doubted  by  a 
well-informed  and  unbiased  student  of  history. 

"  The  melancholy  afflicting  Circumstances  of  the 
Settlers  on  the  Frontier  of  these  Provinces  is  a  Sub- 
ject of  deep  and  painful  Exercise  to  every  mind  en- 
dued with  Christian  Tenderness  and  sympathy,  and 
has  engaged  the  earnest  concern  and  prayers  of  many 
to  be  enabled  steadily  to  wait  for  and  receive  a  right 
understanding  how  to  act  in  the  divers  methods  pro- 
posed for  their  Relief,  so  as  to  manifest  to  the  World 
that  a  desire  to  maintain  the  Testimony  of  Truth  in- 
violate and  to  promote  the  spreading  of  the  Gospell  of 
peace  is  preferred  by  them  to  every  temporal  Con- 
sideration."^ 

The  Quaker  Peace  Policy  forever  ended  in  Penn- 
sylvania in  1756  because  after  that  time  Friends  never 
had  a  controlling  voice  in  the  government.  One  or  two 
events  subsequent  to  that  date  should,  however,  be 
mentioned  in  this  connection. 

The  minutes  of  the  Friendly  Association  end  in  1760 
though  its  activities  continued  for  a  brief  period  after 
that  time.  It  continued  to  provide  material  aid  for  the 
Indians  and  to  send  representatives  to  look  after  their 
interests  when  treaties  were  made.  It  apparently 
brought  its  efforts  to  a  close  in  1764  or  shortly  there- 
after.    Nothing  is  heard  of  it  at  the  Treaty  of  Fort 

9  MS.  Minutes,  1756. 


THE    QUAKER    PEACE.  69 

Stanwix  in  1768  when  the  final  treaty  was  made  that 
closed  the  Indian  question  until  the  time  of  the  Revo- 
lution.^^ 

The  so-called  "  Paxton  Riot "  is  worthy  of  mention 
because  at  that  time  some  of  the  younger  and  more 
exuberant  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends  relaxed 
their  peace  principles  and  were  very  near  to  fighting 
for  not  against  the  Indians. 

In  1763  some  Scotch-Irish  frontiersmen  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, residing  near  the  Susquehanna  River,  became 
incensed  over  some  occasional  Indian  depredations  on 
the  frontier  and  murdered  a  small  band  of  helpless 
Indians,  mostly  women  and  children,  who  lived  peace- 
ably within  the  white  settl^ements  in  Lancaster  County. 
A  little  later  a  similar  group  of  frontiersmen,  several 
hundred  in  number,  marched  toward  Philadelphia  to 
visit  like  vengeance  upon  some  Christian  Moravian  In- 
dians sheltered  there,  and  incidentally  upon  any 
Quaker  who  might  attempt  to  block  the  enterprise. 
The  raiders  were  met  near  Philadelphia  and  induced 
to  turn  back  by  a  deputation  from  the  provincial  gov- 
ernment, but  not  until  many  young  Friends  had  armed 
themselves  and  joined  the  provisional  militia  raised  in 
Philadelphia  to  ward  off  the  threatened  raid.  The 
spectacle  of  armed  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends, 
taking  refuge  from  the  wintry  cold  within  the  meet- 
ing house,  and  stacking  their  arms  in  the  gallery  on 
this  strange  occasion,  is  an  anomalous  picture  of 
Quaker  devotion  to  the  Indians  and  infidelity  to  the 
Friendly  principle  of  peace.  Some  of  the  members 
involved  in  this  affair  later  acknowledged  their  offence 

10  Parrish,   Friendly  Assoc,    117-118.      Sharpless,   Quaker  Ex- 
periment, 2 :  38. 

6 


70  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

and  others  were  labored  with  by  the  Monthly  Meeting 
of  Philadelphia,  apparently  with  not  too  great  harsh- 
ness.^^ 

While  the  Friendly  policy  of  peace  with  the  Indians 
was  worked  out  to  best  advantage  in  Pennsylvania, 
there  is  scattering  evidence  to  show  that  southern 
Friends  were  not  unmindful  of  the  same  testimony. 

John  Archdale,  the  Quaker  governor  of  the  Caro- 
linas,  made  a  treaty  of  peace  and  friendship  with  a 
coast  tribe  of  Indians  who  had  earlier  practiced  "  bar- 
barous Cruelty  on  Men  Castaway  on  their  Coast,"  but 
who  subsequent  to  the  treaty  astounded  by  their  civility 
and  kindness  a  company  of  shipwrecked  whites  who 
fell  into  their  hands. 

A  little  later  Archdale  urgently  advised  against  all 
wars  and  animosities  among  Christians  who  wished  to 
influence  the  Indians  rightly,  for  by  such  actions,  he 
argues,  the  Christians  discard  "  the  essential  Badge  of 
Christianity,  and  so  can  never  be  Instruments  to  propa- 
gate the  Gospel  amongst  the  Heathen,  who  will  never 

be  won  to  the  Gospel  of  Peace  by  the  Banner  [of] 
War."i2 

In  the  Indian  war,  1711-1713,  Friends  of  North 
Carolina  had  to  meet  a  difficult  situation  similar  to 
the  one  faced  by  Pennsylvania  Friends  during  the 
French  and  Indian  War.  In  1712  the  Yearly  Meeting 
of  North  Carolina,  held  at  Perquimmans,  aj>pointed  a 
committee  to  attend  the  provincial  assembly  on  ac- 
count of  the  Indian  war  and  the  consequent  "  distress 
and  trouble  which  is  Like  to  come  upon  Friends." 

11  Sharpless,  Quaker  Experiment,  2  :  42-63.  Same,  in  Jones, 
Quakers  in  Amer.  Cols.,  505-508. 

^^  Hist.  Collections  of  S.  C,  2:  108-109,  117. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  71 

There  is  no  further  record  on  the  subject  and  the 
above  minute  is  rather  obscure.  It  is  probable,  how- 
ever, that  Friends  wanted  to  influence  the  Assembly 
toward  a  speedy  peace  with  the  Indians,  and  to  protest 
against  compulsory  military  service.  In  the  latter  con- 
nection it  is  evident  that  Friends  were  troubled  with 
some  of  their  members,  as  were  Friends  of  Philadel- 
phia half  a  century  later.  In  171 3  Eastern  Quarterly 
Meeting  expressed  regret  that  some  of  its  members 
had  neglected  the  caution  and  advice  of  Friends  and 
had  obeyed  "  a  law  made  in  this  country  to  oblige  all 
free  men  between  sixteen  and  sixty  years  of  age  to 
go  to  the  Indian  war  or  otherwise  to  forfeit  five 
pounds."  The  available  records  are  incomplete  and 
do  not  show  what  punishment  was  meted  out  to  the 
disobedient  Friends,  but  the  temper  of  the  meeting  is 
shown  in  the  concluding  portion  of  the  same  minute : 
"Yet  we  [do  regret]  nevertheless  some  have  gone 
contrary  to  the  command  of  Christ  and  the  advice  of 
their  friends  and  brethren  in  the  truth  and  sore  dis- 
honoured their  Head,  themselves,  their  profession  be- 
sides bringing  of  a  burden  upon  others  of  the  same 
profession  in  complying  with  the  said  law.  Some  see- 
ing and  knowing  this  to  be  done  do  advise  that  those 
be  dealt  with  in  true  love  to  make  them  sensible  if  it 
be  in  their  power,  of  the  wrong  they  have  done  them- 
selves and  the  church  they  do  belong  to  and  for  them 
to  give  it  satisfaction,  as  such  an  offence  justly  re- 
quires that  the  reproach  may  be  removed  and  they 
received  into  unity."^^ 
After  the  Indian  troubles  at  this  period  and  the  re- 

13  MS.   Minutes   of   respective   meetings,    1712    and   4    mo.    27, 
1713. 


72  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

moval  of  the  war-like  Tuscaroras  to  New  York,  south- 
ern Friends  enjoyed  comparative  immunity  from  the 
vexing  problems  entailed  by  Indian  hostilities.  How- 
ever, at  the  time  of  the  American  Revolution,  there  Is 
a  minute  of  New  Garden  Monthly  Meeting  to  show 
that  the  old  peace  testimony  was  not  forgotten: 
"Abraham  Potter  offered  a  paper  to  this  meeting 
condemning  his  misconduct  of  taking  up  arms  to  de- 
fend himself  against  the  Indians  which  was  read  and 
accepted."^* 

Such  was  the  Indian  Peace  Policy  advocated  by 
Friends  as  opportunity  offered  in  public  or  private 
life  in  several  of  the  American  colonies  north  and 
south.  One  result  of  such  advocacy,  the  preservation 
of  Friends  from  Indian  depredations,  deserves  more 
than  passing  mention. 

The  fact  is  picturesque  enough  to  invite  over-empha- 
sis in  history  and  probably  too  much  has  been  made 
of  it  in  the  past.  Probably  more  Friends  suffered  in 
Indian  wars  than  is  generally  known.  There  were 
certainly  more  than  Dymond  cited  in  his  Essay  on 
War. 

It  is  probable  that  the  present  author  has  compiled 
an  incomplete  list  and  that  historical  investigation  will 
discover  further  examples  from  time  to  time.  Yet  in 
order  to  arrive  as  nearly  as  possible  at  the  truth  of 
the  matter  it  will  be  worth  while  to  mention  briefly  the 
chief  examples  that  have  been  recorded  of  the  suf- 
ferings of  Friends  at  the  hands  of  the  Indians. 

The  earliest  event  of  the  kind  discovered  occurred 
in  New  England  during  the  Indian  disturbances  of 
Queen  Anne's  War.     Thomas  Story  was  traveling  in 

1*  MS.  Minutes,  New  Garden  Mo.  Mtg.,  9  mo.,  1775. 


THE    QUAKER   PEACE.  73 

New  England  at  the  time  and  tells  of  a  man  with 
whom  he  talked  who  had  engaged  in  conversation  with 
some  Indians  who  declared  they  would  never  injure 
the  peaceable  Quakers.  Three  Friends,  however,  about 
1704,  in  Massachusetts,  two  men  and  a  woman,  were 
killed  by  the  Indians.  Friends  in  general  had  re- 
frained entirely  from  carrying  weapons  or  from  taking 
refuge  in  garrisons.  The  two  men  in  question  broke 
away  from  this  practice  and  carried  guns,  and  the 
woman  took  refuge  in  a  garrison.  Whereupon  the 
Indians,  classing  them  with  other  militant  whites, 
killed  them  in  cold  blood.^^ 

Again,  about  1725,  there  was  evidently  some  suf- 
fering by  Friends  at  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  for  in 
that  year  and  for  one  or  two  years  following  there  are 
records  in  the  minutes  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meet- 
ing of  a  collection  of  nearly  a  thousand  dollars  taken 
up  for  John  Hanson,  "  of  the  eastern  part  of  New 
England,  whose  wife,  four  children  and  a  servant 
were  carried  off  by  the  Indians  and  he  had  to  ransom 
them  at  a  great  price."^^ 

Just  prior  to  the  Revolutionary  War  the  Quaker 
frontier  in  Georgia  began  to  waver  somewhat  on  ac- 
count of  the  Indian  troubles  and  meetings  were  held 
irregularly.  The  climax  of  the  trouble  came  when 
Tamar  Kirk  Mendenhall  and  her  eldest  son  were  killed 
by  the  Indians  and  the  youngest  son  held  in  captivity 
for  about  two  years.  It  is  probable,  however,  in  this 
case  also  that  these  Friends  did  not  uphold  the  usual 
Quaker  testimony  of  fearlessness  and  trust,  as  they 

15  Chalkley,  Journal  (1818  edn.),  58-65.  Life  of  Thos.  Story 
(1786  edn.),  187-190. 

16  MS.  Minutes  of  Phila.  Y.  M.,  1 725-1 727. 


74  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

had  retreated  from  their  homestead  earHer  in  the  year 
and  had  returned  to  gather  the  ripened  grain  when  the 
tragedy  occurred.  It  would  seem  from  both  of  the 
above  accounts  that  the  safety  of  Friends  lay  in  the 
consistent  attitude  of  peace  that  set  them  apart  in  the 
eyes  of  the  savages  from  all  other  white  settlers. ^^ 

The  above  instances,  of  five  persons  killed  and  mem- 
bers of  two  families  taken  captive,  all  occurred  in 
New  England  or  the  southern  colonies  where  Friends 
had  had  no  controlling  voice  in  shaping  the  Indian 
policy.  It  is  probable  also  that  Friends  suffered  some- 
what, at  least  in  property,  at  the  time  of  King  Philip's 
War  in  New  England.  In  New  Jersey,  on  the  other 
hand,  there  never  occurred  an  Indian  war,  and  in 
Pennsylvania  when  the  Quaker  Peace  Policy  was 
finally  overthrown  by  the  non-Friendly  authorities,  the 
preservation  of  the  lives  and  property  of  Friends  was 
remarkable. 

The  Indian  hostilities  that  broke  out  on  the  Penn- 
sylvania border  in  1755  came  to  an  end,  except  for 
sporadic  outbreaks,  in  1757.  The  immunity  of  Friends 
during  the  war  was  beyond  the  faith  of  the  Society. 
It  is  clear  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  that  Friends 
believed  they  would  have  to  suffer  along  with  others, 
the  innocent  with  the  guilty.  It  has  been  stated  often, 
and,  for  the  most  part  truly,  that  the  Scotch-Irish  and 
some  Germans  lived  on  the  frontier,  while  Friends 
held  the  older  settlements  of  Pennsylvania  near  the 
coast.  On  this  account  some  critics  have  railed  upon 
Friends  because  in  their  comparative  security  they 
were  not  willing  to  provide  military  defense  for  the 

17  Weeks,  So,   Quakers,   1 18-120.     See   also   The  Magazine   of 
History,  Aug.,  191 1,  17-23. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  .  75 

exposed  frontier.  It  has  even  been  intimated  that 
because  of  the  safety  of  their  own  position  they  were 
the  readier  to  avoid  mihtary  taxation.^^  Yet  it  seems 
very  clear  from  the  records  that  at  the  opening  of  the 
war  there  were  Friends  in  the  outlying  settlements 
exposed  to  the  Indians,  and  that  the  Society  faced  the 
possibilty  and  probability  that  they  would  suffer.  In- 
deed, one  of  the  land-mark  events  in  the  organization 
of  the  Yearly  Meeeting  came  at  this  time  and  on  this 
account.  In  1756  the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  was  es- 
tablished, chiefly  because  of  the  disturbances  on  the" 
frontier,  and  its  first  duty  was  "  to  Hear  and  Consider 
the  Cases  of  any  Friends  under  Sufferings,  especially 
such  as  suffer  from  the  Indians  or  other  Enemies." 
In  1757  Friends  of  Philadelphia  in  their  epistle  to 
London  Yearly  Meeting  said :  "  We  can  inform  you 
with  Thankfulness  that  the  Losses  and  Sufferings  of 
our  Brethren  on  the  Frontiers  from  the  Indian  En- 
emies have  not  been  so  great  as  we  had  cause  to  ap- 
prehend, the  last  year  none  being  killed  or  taken  Cap- 
tives that  we  have  heard  of."^^ 

While  in  a  few  instances  aid  was  extended  to 
Friends  who  suffered  property  loss,  yet  at  the  close 
of  the  Indian  hostilities  of  this  period,  Israel  Pember- 
ton,  a  leading  Friend  of  Philadelphia  and  a  prominent 
worker  in  the  Friendly  Association,  could  write  in  a 
personal  letter :  "  Is  it  not  a  consideration  worthy  of 
thankful  remembrance,  that  in  all  the  desolation  on 
our  frontiers,  not  one  Friend  we  have  heard  of,  has 
been  slain  or  carried  captive,  and  we  have  reason  to 

18  For  a  general  consideration  of  this  and  similar  criticisms 
see  General  Note  below,  pp.  79-83. 

19  MS.  Minutes  of  Phila.  Y,  M.,  1756. 


76  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

think,  both  from  their  conduct  in  places  where  Friends 
were  as  much  exposed  as  others  and  from  their  dec- 
larations to  us,  they  would  never  hurt  Friends  if  they 
knew  us  to  be  such."^^ 

In  1780,  many  years  after  the  Quaker  peace  had 
come  to  an  end,  and  when  the  Indians  were  inflamed 
by  the  ravages  of  a  raiding  army,  occurred  the  famous 
captivity  of  the  Gilbert  family.  During  the  preceding 
year  General  Sullivan  of  the  American  revolutionary 
army  had  swept  from  northeastern  Pennsylvania  into 
central  New  York,  burning  villages,  destroying  veg- 
etable and  grain  crops,  girdling  fruit  trees,  and  leaving 
a  wide  path  of  desolation  where  had  been  the  fruitful 
country  of  the  Five  Nations.  During  the  following 
year  broken  bands  of  Indians  took  savage  vengeance 
on  the  frontier  settlements  and  plied  the  torch  and 
tomahawk  along  the  borders  of  New  York  and  Penn- 
sylvania. 

Benjamin  Gilbert  and  family,  members  of  Richland 
Monthly  Meeting,  Bucks  County,  Pennsylvania,  were 
residing  at  this  time  on  Mahoning  Creek,  not  far  from 
the  later  city  of  Mauch  Chunk.  Their  situation  was 
quite  exposed  to  frontier  attacks  and  in  the  spring  of 
1780  the  immediate  family  and  a  few  others  were 
taken  captive  by  a  roving  band  of  Indian  warriors. 
They  were  taken  on  a  painful,  heart-breaking  march 
across  central  New  York  to  Fort  Niagara,  often  in  ap- 
parent danger  of  death  at  the  hands  of  their  cruel 
captors.  At  Fort  Niagara  the  English  officers  secured 
the  release  of  Benjamin  Gilbert  and  part  of  his  family 
by  purchase  from  the  Indians.    The  other  members  of 

20  Letter  of  12  mo.  2nd,  1758,  reprinted  in  The  Friend,  Phila., 
46  (1873):   187. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  77 

the  family  eventually  obtained  their  liberty  and  all  re- 
turned to  Pennsylvania,  excepting  Benjamin  Gilbert 
who  died  shortly  after  his  release  by  the  Indians.^^ 

Such  are  the  chief  exceptions  that  seem  to  empha- 
size the  rule  that  Friends  were  largely  immune  from 
Indian  attacks  because  of  their  well  known  policy  of 
peace  and  good-will  toward  the  natives.  That  the  In- 
dians did  as  a  rule  make  a  distinction  between  Friends 
and  others  can  scarcely  be  denied.  At  a  later  date  the 
Shawnee  Indians,  a  tribe  engaged  in  this  war,  stated 
explicitly  in  a  message  to  Friends  that  in  former  days 
they  knew  members  of  the  Society  from  the  people 
of  the  world  "  by  the  simplicity  of  [their]  appearance 

which  in  times  of  war  had  been  a  preservation  to 
[them]. "22 

An  outgrowth  of  the  Quaker  Peace  Policy  that 
should  be  mentioned  in  conclusion  was  the  custom 
practiced  by  Friends  of  attending  treaties  in  order  to 
safeguard  the  rights  of  the  Indians.  In  1701  William 
Penn  had  promised  the  Indians  that  he  would  give 
them  counsel  from  time  to  time  to  promote  their  in- 
terests.    Following  this  principle,  when  Friends  lost 

21  The  Captivity  and  Sufferings  of  Benjamin  Gilbert  and  His 
Family  (edn.  1904),  25,  ff. — There  were  at  this  period  other 
scattering  cases  of  Friends  who  suffered  property  loss  as  a  result 
of  Indian  raids,  and  English  Friends  contributed  to  help  make 
good  such  losses. — Notes  of  Norman  Penney  from  MS.  vols. 
"  Letters  to  and  from  Phila."  in  Devonshire  House,  London. 

22  Weeks,  Southern  Quakers,  131. — How  early  Friends  counted 
on  immunity  from  Indian  attacks  is  quaintly  told  by  William 
Edmundson.  In  a  journey  from  Virginia  to  North  Carolina, 
made  against  the  advice  of  others,  he  passed  unharmed  through 
a  dangerous  Indian  country.  He  had  a  distinct  impression  that 
if  he  refrained  from  the  journey  he  would  lose  his  life  but  if 
he  went  his  way  the  Indians  would  not  harm  him. — Journal  of 
William  Edmundson  (edn.  1820),  122-123.  Also  in  Friends' 
Library,  2 :   123. 


78  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

control  of  the  executive  branch  of  the  Pennsylvania 
government  and  hence  could  not  be  represented  offi- 
cially at  treaties,  they  developed  the  custom  of  sending 
unofficial  representatives.  Sometimes  the  provincial 
authorities  objected  to  this  custom  which  seemed  im- 
pertinent to  them,  but  the  Indians  were  glad  to  have 
Friends  present,  and  in  1757  the  great  Delaware  chief, 
Tedyuskung,  refused  to  negotiate  a  treaty  unless  the 
Quakers  were  present.^^  This  practice  of  attending 
treaties  was  continued  by  Friends  during  the  nine- 
teenth century  and  became  one  of  the  typical  methods 
by  which  the  followers  of  William  Penn  showed  their 
lasting  desire  to  aid  the  American  natives. 

So  it  was  that  the  Quaker  Peace  Policy  was  carried 
out  in  Pennsylvania  and  exemplified  in  several  other 
colonies.  So  it  was  broken  down  in  the  province  of 
William  Penn  when  his  policy  of  justice  and  fair  play 
came  to  an  end.  And  so  when  the  evil  days  came  and 
the  tomahawk  was  bared  for  its  deadly  work,  the 
warring  savages  remembered  and  spared  the  children 
of  "  Onas." 

No  more  fitting  conclusion  to  this  part  of  the  story 
could  be  written  than  the  statement  of  Philadelphia 
Friends  regarding  Indian  relations  in  1717.  Then,  in 
the  closing  days  of  William  Penn's  life,  his  Peace 
Policy  was  yielding  its  best  fruits.  The  happy  situ- 
ation depicted  and  the  desire  expressed  for  the  future 
Indian  policy  of  the  country  speak  with  simple  elo- 
quence and  touching  pathos  in  the  light  of  later  history. 

"As  to  .  .  .  our  conduct  towards  the  Heathen,  near 
or  among  whom  it  hath  pleased  God  to  cast  our  lot. 
We  can  truly  say  as  it  has  been  the  care  of  Friends, 

23  Proud,  Hist,  of  Penna.,  2:  61,  Appendix. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  79 

even  from  their  first  settlement  to  behave  with  a 
godly  and  prudent  Carriage  towards  them,  in  which 
our  worthy  friend  William  Penn,  when  here  always 
set  a  noble  and  good  example  by  his  love,  Justice,  and 
tenderness  towards  the  Indians,  so  that  his  memory  is 
dear  to  them,  and  they  love  to  speak  of  and  hear  his 
name.  So  it  is  the  care  of  Friends  in  their  several 
stations,  and  places  what  in  them  lies  to  continue  the 
same,  and  we  could  heartily  desire,  that  as  the  coun- 
try increases,  all  that  come  in  among  us,  and  the  suc- 
ceeding Generations  may  not  slacken  in  that  respect. 
But  look  back  on  the  great  and  remarkable  Blessing, 
preservation  and  peace,  which  the  hand  of  the  Al- 
mighty has  vouchsafed  unto  these  Countrys  as  a  con- 
tinual engagement  upon  the  Inhabitants  thereof." 

GENERAL  NOTE. 

Adverse  comment  on  the  Quaker  Indian  policy  in  Penn- 
sylvania is  to  be  found  in  the  following  works:  Francis 
Parkman,  Conspiracy  of  Pontiac  (2  vol.  edns.),  i :  80-85. 
John  Fiske,  Beginnings  of  New  England,  205-206.  Same, 
Dutch  and  Quaker  Colonies,  2:  160-167.  Only  the  first 
named  requires  examination  as  Fiske  merely  gives  a  para- 
phrased restatement  of  Parkman's  argument. 

Parkman  makes  two  points.  In  the  first  place  he  as- 
serts that  the  Quaker  policy  was  the  only  prudent  policy 
under  the  circumstances :  "  It  required  no  great  benevo- 
lence to  urge  the  Quakers  to  deal  kindly  with  their  savage 
neighbors.  They  were  bound  in  common  sense  to  pro- 
pitiate them;  since  by  incurring  their  resentment,  they 
would  involve  themselves  in  the  dilemma  of  submitting 
their  necks  to  the  tomahawks,  or  wielding  the  carnal 
weapon,  in  glaring  defiance  of  their  pacific  principles." 

It  is  hard  to  escape  the  conclusion  that  in  this  passage 


80  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Parkman's  renowned  flow  of  rhythmic  English  carried 
him  out  of  the  course  of  good  reason.  To  choose  a 
policy  consistent  with  one's  principles  has  been  only  sel- 
dom regarded  as  cause  for  reproach.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  prudence  of  the  policy  of  justice  and  peace  with  the 
Indians  was  ever  urged  by  Friends  from  their  first  settle- 
ment until  now.  The  strange  thing  in  the  light  of  history 
is  that  so  many  communities  for  so  long  a  period  of  time 
chose  the  other  alternative  of  "  submitting  their  necks  to 
the  tomahawk."  It  may  be  wondered  whether  some  future 
hisrtorian  will  seek  to  strip  the  laurels  from  present  day 
advocates  of  international  peace  because  their  oft  iterated 
claim  that  peace  is  the  most  prudent  policy  shall  be  veri- 
fied by  experience.  Parkman's  other  point  is  that  the 
Delaware  Indians  who  treated  with  Penn  were  subject 
to  the  Iroquois  and  so  dared  not  fight  the  Quakers.  He 
says :  "  The  humble  Delawares  were  but  too  happy  to 
receive  the  hand  extended  to  them  [by  Penn],  and  dwell 
in  friendship  with  their  pacific  neighbors;  since  to  have 
lifted  the  hatchet  would  have  brought  upon  their  heads 
the  vengeance  of  their  conquerors,  whose  good-will  Penn 
had  taken  pains  to  secure." 

Parkman  makes  much  of  this  point,  as  does  Fiske,  both 
agreeing  in  the  statement  of  the  former  that  on  this  ac- 
count, "the  position  of  the  colony  [Pennsylvania]  was  a 
most  fortunate  one."  Yet  to  many  it  will  be  hard  to 
understand  why  it  was  fortunate  for  the  policy  of  Friends 
that  they  had  two  claimants  to  satisfy  instead  of  one. 
Parkman  tells  us  only  in  an  inconspicuous  footnote  the 
method  by  which  Penn  "  had  taken  pains  "  to  secure  the 
good-will  of  the  Five  Nations:  "He  paid  twice  for  his 
lands:  once  to  the  Iroquois,  who  claimed  them  by  right 
of  conquest,  and  once  to  their  occupants,  the  Delawares." 
The  fact  is  that  historians  have  pointed  out  again  and 
again  that  while  many  white  settlers  in  various  colonies 
purchased  lands   from  the  Indians,  Penn  and  the  early 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  81 

Friends  went  so  far  as  to  pay  for  lands  twice  if  necessary, 
satisfying  all  reasonable  claimants,  and  indulging  in  no 
sharp  bargains  that  would  cause  chagrin  to  the  Indians 
upon  after  consideration. 

If  Friends  were  not  sincere  in  proclaiming  their  ideal 
of  peace  and  justice,  if  Penn  "had  taken  pains"  to  secure 
the  good-will  of  the  Five  Nations  in  order  to  take  advan- 
tage of  the  "  fortunate  position  "  of  his  colony  among  the 
subjugated  Delawares,  why  did  he  trouble  himself  to  pay 
the  latter  for  their  lands?  Why  did  he  not  use  his  influ- 
ence with  the  Iroquois  to  brow-beat  and  defraud  the  poor 
Delawares?  This  is  exactly  what  happened  when  a  pro- 
prietor succeeded  who  wished  to  profit  by  the  "  fortunate 
position"  of  the  colony.  Parkman  tells  the  incident  of 
the  infamous  Walking  Purchase  of  1737  (see  above,  p.  49) 
but  neglects  to  say  that  the  managing  proprietor  at  that 
time  was  not  a  Friend  and  that  the  wrong  then  done  to 
the  Delawares  was  execrated  by  Friends  at  that  time  as 
it  has  been  ever  since. 

It  would  seem,  therefore,  that  the  "  fortunate  position  " 
of  Pennsylvania  could  redound  to  the  selfish  interest  of 
the  proprietors  only  when  the  policy  of  justice  and  fair 
play  had  been  abandoned.  For  William  Penn  it  only 
complicated  the  task  and  put  his  benevolent  theories  to 
the  greater  test.  He  must  win  the  friendship  of  two 
groups  of  savages  and  satisfy  double  claims  to  his  lands. 

A  recent  work  (1911)  by  Charles  A.  Hanna,  entitled 
the  Wilderness  Trail,  is  very  bitter  in  its  denunciation  of 
the  Quaker  Peace  poHcy  with  the  Indians.  The  writer 
sympathizes  entirely  with  the  Scotch-Irish  frontiersmen 
of  Pennsylvania  who  suffered  in  the  Indian  wars.  He 
advances  the  usual  arguments  against  the  Friends  for 
failing  to  protect  the  people  on  the  frontier.  However, 
his  bitter  invective  against  the  Quakers  removes  that  por- 
tion of  his  work  from  the  class  of  serious  history.  An 
example  of  his  spirit  is  the  following  (i:  25):  "These 


82  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

men  (the  Paxtang  Boys)  and  their  neighbors  are  subject 
to  another  serious  reproach.  At  least,  if  not  a  reproach, 
it  is  a  matter  of  great  wonder  that  these  Scotch-Irish  of 
the  Pennsylvania  frontier  did  not  organize  themselves 
into  a  lynching  party  nine  years  before  the  Conestoga 
massacre,  .  .  .  march  to  Philadelphia  and  forever  destroy 
the  Quaker  government — a  government  which  as  early 
as  1751  had  forfeited  its  right  to  existence  by  coolly 
inviting  the  sacrifice  of  the  lives  and  fortunes  of  hun- 
dreds of  its  subjects,  in  order  that  the  safely  protected 
and  over-righteous  members  of  its  own  little  clique  might 
escape  taxation  for  military  purposes,  and  better  the  sup- 
posed chances  for  the  salvation  of  their  own  tiny,  pinched, 
and  self-magnified  souls." 

For  criticisms  of  Hanna's  anti-Quaker  bias  see  the  fol- 
lowing reviews:  Nation,  N.  Y.,  93  (1911)  :  242-243. 
Athenaeum,  London  (July  i,  191 1)  :  7-8.  From  the  latter 
may  be  quoted  the  following  pertinent  suggestions  con- 
cerning the  views  of  Parkman  and  his  followers,  includ- 
ing Hanna. 

"What  was  in  1755  a  violent  party  view,  with  little 
force  outside  the  coteries  of  a  locality,  received  after  the 
lapse  of  more  than  a  century  a  new  lease  of  life  in  the 
picturesque  pages  of  Parkman,  who  is  obsequiously  fol- 
lowed (when  not  merely  paraphrased  and  exaggerated) 
by  all  British  writers  on  the  subject  and  most  American 
ones.  But  Parkman  was  by  temperament,  character,  and 
choice  of  subject  antipathetic  towards  the  Quaker,  pacific, 
or  even  political  type  of  man;  and  so  in  regard  to  what 
was  indeed  a  difficult  question,  with  rights  and  wrongs 
on  both  sides,  he  did  not  even  take  the  trouble  to  inform 
himself  fully  of  the  facts.  That  his  *  school '  should  do  so 
was  not  to  be  expected ;  but  Mr.  Hanna  has  enough  knowl- 
edge to  be  his  own  master.  Yet  among  expressions  of 
the  Parkman  view — expressions  which  heighten  in  tone 
at  every  repetition — none  has  pleased  us  so  much  as  the 
additions  here  made.    For  instance,  the  '  Paxtang  Boys,' 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  83 

who  in  1763  butchered  some  harmless  Indian  neighbors 
(mostly  old  people  and  children),  are  to  blame  for  that 
excess,  but  also  because  they  did  not  rather  *  march  to 
Philadelphia  and  overthrow  and  forever  destroy  the 
Quaker  government'  (etc.  as  quoted  above).  .  .  .  Now  this 
is  the  very  voice  of  Lancaster  County,  not  to  say  of 
Paxtang  Township.  .  .  .  The  voice  of  truth  on  that  mat- 
ter, we  think,  would  sound  less  ringingly,  and  may  yet 
be  heard." 

Aside  from  the  points  mentioned  above  it  has  been 
asserted  by  Parkman  and  others  that  the  Delaware  In- 
dians were  not  a  warlike  tribe.  To  deduce  this  from  the 
fact  that  for  a  period  they  were  under  subjection  to  the 
powerful  Five  Nations  is  loose  reasoning.  On  account 
of  their  admitted  priority  of  political  rank  the  Delawares 
from  early  times  were  accorded  the  respectful  title  of 
"  Grandfather "  by  all  the  Algonquian  tribes  and  were 
called  "  Wolves "  by  the  French.  During  the  wars  in 
the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  these  same  Dela- 
wares threw  off  the  Iroquois  yoke,  terrified  the  western 
frontier  with  their  ferocity,  and,  according  to  one  of  the 
besrt  modern  authorities,  "up  to  the  treaty  of  Greenville 
in  1795  showed  themselves  the  most  determined  opponents 
of  the  advancing  whites."  (Handbook  of  Amer.  Indians, 
1 :  385.)  Even  Parkman  admits  that  at  this  time  the 
Delawares  "  stood  in  high  repute  for  bravery "  and 
proved  themselves  "  a  race  of  formidable  warriors." 
(Conspiracy  of  Pontiac,  i :  31.) 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTES  FOR  CHAPTERS 
II,  III  AND  IV. 

Allinson,  Samuel.     Fragmentary  History  of  the  New 
Jersey  Indians.    17  pp.    1875. 

Contains  interesting  facts  about  the  New  Jersey  As- 
sociation for  helping  the  Indians. 


84  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

Printed    in   Proceedings    of   N.   /.   Hist.    Soc.    (2d 
series)  4:  33-50- 
Applegarth,  Albert  C.     The  Quakers  in  Pennsylvania. 
In  Johns  Hopkins  University  Studies  in  Historical  and 
Political  Science,  vol.  10.    Bait.    1892. 

In  pp.  50-66  the  author  describes  "  The  Attitude  of 
Quakers  towards  Indians." 
BowDEN,  James.     History  of  the  Society  of  Friends  in 
America.    2  vols.    London.     1 850-1 854. 

Contains   many    references    to    Indians,   based   upon 
source  materials.    Its  usefulness  lessened  by  lack  of  an 
index. 
Captivity  and  Sufferings  of  Benjamin  Gilbert  and  His 
Family.     Cleveland.     1904. 

Reprinted  from  an  edition  of  1784  with  biographical 
data  drawn  in  part  from  a  re-written  edition  of  1848. 
Conduct  of  Friends  towards  the  Indian  Tribes.    London. 

1844. 

This  little  volume  published  by  the  Meeting  for  Suf- 
ferings of  London  Yearly- Meeting  contains  much  valu- 
able information  for  the  period  prior  to  the  time  of  its 
publication.  Pages  19  to  113  tell  much  about  the  early 
preaching  of  Friends  to  the  Indians,  in  most  instances 
giving  considerable  quotations  from  early  Journals,  etc. 

For  a  list  of  other  valuable  publications  on  Indian 
affairs  by  the  London  Meeting  for  Sufferings  see  inside 
of  title  page  to  the  above  work. 
Fox,  George.     Journal.     Cambridge  edition.     Edited  by 
Norman  Penney.     2  vols.     1911. 

This  recent  edition  contains  many  passages  omitted 
in  former  editions  and  omits  other  portions  that  never 
were  a  part  of  the  Journal  proper.  On  these  accounts 
and  because  it  is  reprinted  verbatim  et  literatim  (as 
earlier  editions  were  not)  it  should  be  the  basis  for 
any  careful  study. — See  also  "  The  American  Journey 
of  George  Fox"  in  The  Journal  of  The  Friends'  His- 


THE    QUAKER    PEACE.  85 

torical  Society,  London,  9  (1912)  :  4-52.    From  a  MS. 
in  the  Bodleian  Library. 
Friends'  Library.    14  vols.    Philadelphia.    1 837-1 850. 

Contains  the  journals  and  memoirs  of  several  early 
Friends  who  visited  the  Indians. 
Jones,  Rufus  M.,  and  others.  The  Quakers  in  the  Amer- 
ican Colonies.    191 1. 

Now  the  standard  work  on  Friends  in  America  dur- 
ing the  colonial  period.  To  be  continued  to  cover  later 
periods. 

The   part   relating   to   New   Jersey   was   written  by 
Amelia  Mott  Gummere,  and  that  relating  to  Pennsylva- 
nia by  Isaac  Sharpless. 
Journals  and  Lives  of  various  Friends. 

See  Friends'  Library  listed  above  and  Smith's  Cata- 
logue below. 
Lauber,  a.  W.    Indian  Slavery  in  Colonial  Times.    Vol. 
54,  No.  3,  Studies  in  History,  Economics,  and  Public 
Law,  Columbia  University.    New  York.     191 3. 
Minutes  of  yearly  and  other  meetings  of  Friends. 

Where  MS.  minutes  are  cited  they  have  been  ex- 
amined by  the  author.  The  date  is  sufficient  for  finding 
any  passage  and  where  that  is  given  in  the  text  a  foot- 
note citation  is  sometimes  omitted. 

For  the  present  location  of  the  records  of  the  various 
yearly  meetings,  see  General  Note  on  Bibliography  at 
end  of  volume. 
New  Jersey  Archives  (ist  series).    Vols.  i-io.    Newark, 
N.  J.    1 880-1 886. 

These  volumes   (the  first  ten  of  a  large  series)  con- 
tain reprints  of  official  documents.     See  "  Indians  "  in 
General  Index. 
Norton,  Humphrey,  and  others.     New  England's  En- 
signe.     1659. 

Brief  reference  to  relations  of  some  early  Friends 
with  New  England  Indians. 


86  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Parrish,  Samuel.    Some  Chapters  in  the  History  of  the 
Friendly  Association.     Philadelphia.     1877. 

Based  upon  the  "Minute  Book"  of  the  Association 
and  other  valuable  papers. 

The  most  complete  work  on  the  subject. 
Penn,  William.     Works.     London.     1771.     And  other 
editions. 

This  old  collection  contains  little  on  Penn's  Indian 
policy. 

The  collection  of  Penn's  Works  now  being  prepared 
by  Albert  Cook  Myers,  Moylan,  Pa.,  will  be  standard. 

Further  letters  and  papers  of  William  Penn  are  to 
be  found  in  the  following  works: 

Hist.  Soc.  of  Penna.,  Memoirs,  vols,  i,  2,  3,  9,  10. 
Vols.  9  and  10  contain  the  Penn-Logan  correspondence. 

Hazard,  Annals  of  Penna.,  1850. 

Hazard,  Register  of  Penna.,  16  vols.,  1828-1834. 

Penna.  Records  and  Archives.     See  below. 

Proud,  Hist,  of  Penna.    See  below. 

Penna.  Magazine  of  Hist,  and  Biography.  Especially 
vol.  10. 

Watson,  Annals  of  Phila.    1830. 

Many  of  Penn's  letters  and  papers  will  also  be  found 
in  the  biographies  of  him,  especially  that  by  Janney. 

Among  the  following  biographies  and  memoirs  of 
Penn  those  by  Janney,  Clarkson,  and  Dixon  are  the 
best:  Belknap,  Clarkson,  Dixon,  Eggleston,  Ellis, 
Fisher,  Janney. 

A  thoroughly  satisfactory  life  of  William  Penn  is 
yet  to  be  written. 
Pennsylvania  Records,  16  vols.    Archives  (ist  series),  12 
vols.    Philadelphia,  Harrisburg.     1 852-1 856. 

These  volumes  form  the  standard  collection  of  source 
materials  on  early  Penna.  history.  There  is  a  General 
Index  that  leads  the  reader  to  voluminous  official  rec- 
ords of  Indian  relations. 


THE   QUAKER   PEACE.  87 

See  also  Votes  of  the  Assembly,  1662-1/^6.    6  vols. 
1 752-1 776.      Charters   and   Laws,    1879.      Statutes   at 
Large,  vols.  2-7,  1899. 
Proud,  Robert.    History  of  Pennsylvania.    2  vols.    Phila- 
delphia.    1 797-1 798. 

A  rare,  old  work,  still  very  valuable.    Contains  many 
reprints  of  William  Penn's  letters  and  papers,  and  other 
original  documents. 
Quaker  Biographies.     5  vols.     Philadelphia.     1909-1914. 

In  vol.  3,  pp.  1 10-139,  are  accounts  of  various  visits 
to    the    Indians,    especially    by    William    Savery    and 
Thomas  Wistar. 
Sharpless,   Isaac.     A    Quaker  Experiment  in   Govern- 
ment.   2  vols.    Philadelphia.     1 898-1 899. 

This  work,  of  which  several  editions  have  been 
printed,  is  the  standard  work  on  Friends  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. 

The  relations  of  Friends  with  the  Indians  are  cov- 
ered quite  fully  in  the  following  chapters :  The  Indians, 
Military  Matters,  Last  Days  of  Quaker  Control  of  the 
Assembly,  The  Friendly  Association,  The  Paxton  Riot. 
Smith,  Joseph.  Descriptive  Catalogue  of  Friends* 
Books.    2  vols.    London.    1867. 

A  very  full  list  of  official  and  private  publications  by 
Friends.     There  is  also  a  supplement  published  in  1893. 
Smith,  Samuel.    History  of  New  Jersey.    1765. 

An  old  work  but  still  invaluable  for  early  New  Jer- 
sey history.  Contains  much  information  on  Friends 
and  the  Indians,  including  reprints  of  source  material. 
Thomas,  A.  C,  and  R.  H.  A  History  of  Friends  in 
America.  Revised  and  enlarged  edition.  Philadelphia. 
1905. 

The  standard  one  volume  work  on  the  subject. 
Thomson,   Charles.     Causes  of  the  Alienation   of  the 
Delaware  and  Shawnese  Indians.     Philadelphia.     1759. 
Reprinted,  1867. 


88  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

Published  anonymously.  A  careful  and  valuable 
contemporary  examination  of  the  injustice  in  land 
transactions,  etc.,  practiced  upon  the  Indians  by  the 
later  proprietors  and  their  agents,  which  led  finally  to 
the  Indian  war  in  Pennsylvania. 

Walton,    Joseph    S.      Conrad    Weiser.      Philadelphia. 
1900. 

This  volume  written  by  a  Friend  contains  interesting 
facts  illustrating  the  Quaker  attitude  toward  the 
Indians. 

Weeks,    Stephen    B.     Southern   Quakers   and  Slavery. 
Johns  Hopkins  Press,  Baltimore.     1896. 

This  standard  work  is  based  on  primary  materials, 
MS.  Minutes  of  meetings,  etc.  It  follows  the  migra- 
tions of  Friends  to  the  South  and  thence  to  the  west, 
with  frequent  references  to  their  relations  with  the 
Indians. 


CHAPTER  V. 

TUNESASSA. 

In  1789  George  Washington  was  inducted  into  office 
as  the  first  President  of  the  United  States  under  the 
Constitution.  One  of  the  first  and  gravest  problems 
with  which  he  had  to  deal  was  the  question  of  how  to 
pacify  the  western  Indians  who  were  greatly  agitated 
by  the  advance  of  white  settlers  across  the  Ohio.  The 
administration  decided  to  use  a  strong  hand  in  bring- 
ing the  Indians  to  terms  and  after  six  years  of  inter- 
mittent war  and  bloodshed  a  permanent  peace  was  ar- 
ranged at  Greenville  (Ohio)  in  the  summer  of  1795. 

It  was  the  Indian  trouble  of  these  years  that  led 
Friends  to  renewed  activity  in  their  efforts  on  behalf 
of  the  Indians.  Individual  Friends  visited  the  In- 
dians in  their  homes  and  committees  of  Friends  at- 
tended their  treaty  councils. 

The  most  important  result  of  this  renewed  interest 
was  however  an  advance  from  the  earlier  conception 
that  all  missionary  efforts  for  the  Indians  must  be  the 
result  of  individual  leading.  Transition  was  made  to 
the  corporate  "concern."  In  the  years  following  1795 
various  yearly  meetings  in  their  corporate  capacity 
established  mission  stations  among  the  Indians. 

The  principal  work  of  this  kind  carried  on  by  Phila- 
delphia Friends  and  the  only  one  supported  officially 
by  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  was  among  the  Six 
Nations  of  Iroquois  in  southwestern  New  York.    As 

89 


90  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

the  national  capital  was  located  in  Philadelphia  during 
the  decade  1 790-1 800  Friends  had  many  opportunities 
for  conferences  with  deputations  of  Indians  that  came 
to  present  their  grievances  and  appeals  to  the  Presi- 
dent and  Congress.  On  occasion  the  Meeting  for  Suf- 
ferings drew  up  petitions  to  the  national  government 
on  behalf  of  the  Indians  and  thus,  as  the  interest  grew, 
Friends  of  Philadelphia  entered  upon  a  new  era  of 
activity  in  this  field  of  service.^ 

Mention  has  heen  made  in  an  earlier  chapter^  of  the 
custom  developed  among  Friends  of  the  eighteenth 
century  of  attending  Indian  treaties.  Pursuant  to  this 
custom  a  deputation  of  Friends,  at  the  urgent  request 
of  the  Indians,  made  a  journey  in  1793  to  attend  a 
treaty  conference  to  be  held  at  Sandusky,  Ohio.  Al- 
though little  progress  was  made  by  the  government  at 
this  time  toward  securing  a  general  treaty  yet  the 
representative  Friends  had  opportunity  for  consid- 
erable friendly  intercourse  with  the  Indians.^ 

Again  the  following  year  a  treaty  conference  was 
held  by  the  government  with  representative  chiefs  of 
the  Six  Nations  at  Canandaigua,  New  York,  and  a 
committee  of  Friends  again  attended.*  An  address 
prepared  by  the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  seemed  to  be 
much  appreciated  by  the  assembled  Indians  as  was  also 
the  gift  of  various  presents  brought  by  the  delegated 
Friends.     The  Indians  made  speeches  to  the  Friends 

1  For  the  chief  sources  of  this  chapter  see  Bibliographical 
Note  at  close  of  chapter. 

2  See  above,  p.  TJ. 

3  Wm,  Savery,  John  Parrish,  John  Elliott,  Jacob  Lindley, 
Joseph  Moore  and  Wm.  Hartshorne  were  the  Friends  who  made 
this  journey.  See  Phila.  Y.  M.  Meeting  for  Sufferings,  MS. 
Minutes,  3:  22(i  ff.     Also  Conduct  of  Friends  (1844),  101-106. 

4  Wm.  Savery,  David  Bacon,  John  Parrish  and  James  Emlen. 


WILLIAM    SAVERY 
(1750-1804) 


TUNESASSA.  91 

and  requested  advice  from  them  as  difficulties  arose 
during  the  progress  of  the  negotiations  for  the  treaty. 

It  may  be  safely  said  that  it  was  the  impressions 
gained  by  the  Friends  present  at  this  treaty  that  led  to 
the  permanent  work  of  Philadelphia  Friends  among 
the  Six  Nations  and  their  allied  tribes.  There  amidst 
the  rugged  surroundings  of  an  undeveloped  country, 
encircled  by  the  encamped  representatives  of  the  once 
powerful  Six  Nations  a  "  weighty  concern "  settled 
upon  the  minds  and  spirits  of  the  Friends  present. 
"  This  evening  Friends  being  quietly  together,"  writes 
William  Savery  in  his  Journal,  "  our  minds  were  se- 
riously turned  to  consider  the  present  state  of  these 
six  nations;  and  a  lively  prospect  presented,  that  a 
mode  could  be  adopted  by  which  Friends  and  other 
humane  people  might  be  made  useful  to  them  in  a 
greater  degree  than  has  ever  yet  been  effected ;  at  least 
for  the  cause  of  humanity  and  justice,  and  for  the  sake 
of  this  poor  declining  people,  we  are  induced  to  hope 
so.  The  prospect  and  feelings  of  our  minds  were  such 
as  will  not  be  forgotten,  if  we  are  favoured  to  return 
home."^ 

True  to  the  impression  made  upon  them  at  this  time 
the  Friends  made  a  stirring  appeal  in  their  report  to 
the  Meeting  for  Sufferings.  After  mentioning  that 
the  Indians  still  kept  bright  the  memory  of  William 
Penn  and  reposed  great  confidence  in  the  "  children  of 
Onas,"  the  report  continued :  "  Many  are  the  dif- 
ficulties and  sufferings  to  which  the  Indians  are  sub- 
jected, and  their  present  Situation  appears  loudly  to 
claim  the  Sympathy  and  Attention  of  the  members  of 
our   religous    Society   and    others    who   have   grown 

5  Wm.  Savery,  Journal  (edn.  1844),  p.  75, 


92  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

numerous  and  opulent  on  the  former  Inheritence  of 
these  poor  dedining  People;  we  cannot  but  believe 
some  mode  may  be  fallen  upon  of  rendering  them 
more  essential  Service  than  has  yet  been  adopted."^ 

It  was  this  appeal  that  stirred  the  Meeting  for  Suf- 
ferings to  propose  further  action  to  the  following 
Yearly  Meeting,  held  in  1795,  and  from  that  time  until 
the  present  the  Indian  Committee  of  Philadelphia 
Yearly  Meeting  has  been  active  in  its  field  of  service. 

The  Yearly  Meeting  of  1795  at  first  appointed  a 
large  committee  of  forty-three  members  to  give  pre- 
liminary consideration  to  the  subject  and  upon  a 
favorable  report  by  this  committee,  made  while  the 
Yearly  Meeting  was  still  in  session,  the  first  standing 
committee  on  Indian  affairs  was  appointed. ''' 

The  line  of  action  to  be  pursued  by  the  committee 
had  been  rather  clearly  marked  out  in  advance.  The 
need  of  the  Indians  for  schools  and  for  practical  train- 
ing in  agriculture  and  the  mechanical  arts  was  ap- 
parent. The  great  Seneca  Chief  Corn  Planter  had 
requested  as  early  as  1791  that  Friends  take  some 
Indian  boys  to  the  vicinity  of  Philadelphia  to  educate 

6  Phila.   Y.  M.  Meeting  for   Sufferings,  MS.  Minutes,  3  :   274- 

275. 

7  This  latter  Comm.  was  composed  of  29  Friends  as  follows : 
John  Parrish,  John  Elliott,  John  Spencer,  jun.,  Anthony  Johnson, 
John  Stapler,  Oliver  Paxson,  Joseph  Trimble,  James  Emlen, 
Isaac  Coates,  Amos  Harvey,  Warner  Mifflin,  Samuel  Howell,  John 
Smith,  Benjamin  Clark,  Benjamin  Swett,  John  Hunt  (of 
Evesham),  James  Cooper,  Mark  Miller,  Wm.  Hartshorne,  Rich- 
ard Hartshorne,  Thos.  Wistar,  Joseph  Sansom,  Wm.  Savery,  John 
Biddle,  Thomas  Harrison,  Henry  Drinker,  Joseph  Sloan,  John 
Pierce,  John  Hunt  (of  Darby).  This  committee  met  Oct.  4, 
1795,  the  day  after  its  appointment,  and  organized  with  Thomas 
Wistar  as  Clerk  and  John  Elliott  as  Treasurer.  Phila.  Y.  M. 
Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :  3. 


TUNESASSA.  93 

them,  and  a  beginning-  of  this  type  of  service  had  al- 
ready been  made.®  Other  Indians  had  requested  at 
various  times  that  they  be  helped  to  provide  schooling 
for  their  children  and  training  for  themselves  in  the 
arts  of  civilized  life.  During  the  treaty  conference  at 
Canandaigua  in  1794  Sakarissa,  a  Tuscarora  chief,  had 
even  made  the  concrete  suggestion  that  Friends  should 
send  some  of  their  young  men  among  the  Indians  as 
teachers. 

Acting  upon  such  suggestions  the  Committee  pre- 
pared subscription  blanks  for  the  collection  of  funds, 
prefaced  by  an  Epistle  directed  to  the  various  Quar- 
terly and  Monthly  meetings  and  by  extracts  from 
various  speeches  and  letters  of  appeal  addressed  to 
Friends  by  prominent  Indians  during  the  preceding 
years. 

The  definite  objective  of  the  Committee  in  its  initial 
plan  is  set  forth  in  the  following  paragraph  from  this 
Epistle  of  11/3/1795:  "It  is  hoped  that  some  sober 
well  qualified  friends  will  be  drawn  to  unite  with  the 
Concern  so  far  as  to  go  among  them  for  the  purpose 
of  instructing  them  in  husbandry,  and  useful  trades ; 
and  teaching  their  children  necessary  learning  that 
they  may  be  acquainted  with  the  Scriptures  of  truth, 
improve  in  the  principles  of  Christianity,  and  become 
qualified  to  manage  temporal  concerns ;  and  it  is  ex- 
pected that  the  Committee  will  find  it  expedient  to 
erect  Grist  and  Saw  Mills,  Smith's  shops  and  other 
necessary  improvements  in  some  of  their  villages.  For 
the  support  of  those  who  may  be  disposed  to  under- 

8  About  this  period  several  Indian  children  received  training 
in  the  homes  of  Friends  in  Pennsylvania.  For  the  correspond- 
ence with  Corn  Planter  see  Phila.  Y.  M.  for  Sufferings,  MS. 
Minutes,  3:   159,  161-163,  193.     Also  Conduct  of  Friends,  98-99. 


94  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

take  the  performance  of  these  services,  due  provision 
is  intended  to  be  made ;  and  any  proposals  from  con- 
cerned friends  will  be  received  by  Thomas  Wistar  of 
Philadelphia,  our  clerk,  and  laid  before  the  Committee 
for  consideration."^  This  plan  of  blending  religious 
and  practical  instruction  is  fairly  typical  of  the  work 
of  the  Philadelphia  Committee. 

Before  following  these  Friends  to  the  permanent 
field  of  their  labors  among  the  Indians  of  New  York, 
it  may  be  remarked  that  the  Philadelphia  Committee 
has  done  a  great  deal,  especially  during  the  earlier 
years  of  its  activity,  for  various  tribes  of  Indians  in 
many  parts  of  the  United  States.  Cherokees,  Creeks, 
Choctaws  and  Chickasaws  from  the  south ;  Shawnees, 
Delawares,  Miamis,  Wyandots,  Potawatomies,  Ot- 
tawas,  and  Chippewas  from  the  west ;  all  of  these  and 
others  have  received  help.  Often  the  representatives 
of  these  tribes  laid  their  needs  before  the  Committee 
in  Philadelphia  and  secured  the  influence  of  Friends 
in  their  negotiations  with  the  national  government. 
Often  they  carried  back  to  their  distant  homes  letters 
of  greeting  and  advice,  or  funds  for  use  in  an  emer- 
gency, or  tools  and  implements  of  husbandry.  Many 
Friends  of  Philadelphia  were  encouraged  by  the  Com- 
mittee to  make  journeys  for  religious  or  other  service 
among  distant  tribes.  Thus  in  various  ways  and  at  all 
times  have  the  Friends  of  Philadelphia  shown  that 
their  interest  in  the  Indians  was  not  circumscribed  by 
the  bounds  of  their  special  field  of  activity. 

Before  entering  upon  the  work  for  the  Indians  of 
New  York  the  members  of  the  Committee  notified 
President  Washington  and  other  high  officials  of  the 

8  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :  5-6. 


TUNESASSA.  95 

plans  about  to  be  put  into  operation.  From  these 
officials  Friends  received  the  most  cordial  encourage- 
ment and  Timothy  Pickering,  Secretary  of  State, 
wrote  a  letter  to  the  Six  Nations  heartily  recommend- 
ing to  them  the  motives  and  plans  of  Friends. 

The  first  settled  missionary  work  of  the  Committee 
was  among  the  Oneidas.  After  sending  a  circular 
letter  to  the  various  settlements  of  the  Six  Nations 
informing  them  of  the  desire  to  help  them  and  after 
a  visit  of  inspection  and  inquiry  made  by  several 
Friends  it  seemed  that  the  Oneida  Indians  offered  the 
most  open  field  of  service  for  the  time.  Consequently 
in  1796  three  Friends  settled  among  these  Indians 
and  began  the  experiment  of  teaching  them  the  ways 
of  civilized  life.  A  little  later  other  Friends  were  en- 
gaged at  the  same  station,  among  them  a  blacksmith 
fully  provided  with  the  tools  of  his  trade.  Other  tools 
and  implements  of  general  husbandry  were  also  pro- 
vided for  the  instruction  of  the  Indians,  and  the 
women  Friends  who  resided  at  the  mission  home  made 
progress  in  training  the  Indian  women  in  the  arts  of 
house-keeping.  Premiums  were  offered  with  good 
effect  to  excite  competition  among  the  Indian  men  in 
the  raising  of  crops  and  among  the  women  for  the 
weaving  of  woolen  cloth.  Schools  were  also  main- 
tained for  a  time  with  the  support  of  Friends  among 
the  Oneidas  and  also  among  the  Stockbridges  who 
were  settled  on  the  Oneida  reservation. 

The  work  at  this  place  lasted  for  three  years. 
Toward  the  end  of  that  period  Friends  began  to  feel 
that  the  Oneidas  had  been  instructed  sufficiently  to 
enable  them  to  improve  rapidly  if  they  would  but 
apply  themselves.     Some  of  the  Indians  too  had  be- 


96  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

come  suspicious  that  Friends  would  ultimately  bring 
claims  against  them  for  the  services  rendered  and  it 
was  thought  that  such  suspicions  could  best  be  allayed 
by  withdrawing  presently  from  the  field.  Moreover 
the  Yearly  Meeting  of  New  York  was  becoming  inter- 
ested in  the  Indians  of  that  vicinity  and  Philadelphia 
Friends  were  already  extending  their  interest  to  the 
Seneca  tribe  farther  west  in  the  same  state.  Therefore 
the  station  among  the  Oneidas  was  closed  in  1799. 
The  blacksmith's  tools  and  various  implements  of  hus- 
bandry were  given  as  presents  to  the  Indians  and  after 
mutual  expressions  of  good-will  the  resident  Friends 
took  leave  of  the  Oneidas.^^ 

As  heretofore  mentioned,  Friends  had  already  been 
interested  for  some  time  in  the  Seneca  Indians.  The 
Seneca  Chief  Corn  Planter  lived  on  the  Allegheny 
River  in  northwestern  Pennsylvania  about  five  miles 
south  of  the  New  York  line.^^  Other  villages  of 
Senecas  were  located  farther  up  the  Allegheny  River 
and  in  adjacent  parts  of  western  New  York.  Early 
in  1797  Friends  were  considering  what  their  duty 
might  be  toward  these  Indians^^  and  about  the  middle 
of  the  following  year  several  Friends  made  their  way 
into  that  country. 

The  first  settlement  of  Friends  among  the  Senecas 
was  made  at  Genesanguhta,  now  Old  Town,  a  few 
miles  north  of  Corn  Planter's  village  and  within  the 
state   of    New    York.      Three   young    Friends,    Joel 

10  The  Friends  engaged  at  Oneida  station  at  various  times 
were :  Jacob  Taylor,  Henry  Simmons,  Jr.,  Josiah  Rowland,  Jona- 
than Thomas,  Wm.  Gregory  and  wife,  Enoch  Walker,  and  Han- 
nah Jackson. 

11  See  above,  p.  92. 

12  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i :  50. 


TUNESASSA.  97 

Swaine,  Henry  Simmons,  Jr.,  and  Halliday  Jackson 
were  the  first  workers  in  this  field,^^  and  were  accom- 
panied on  their  journey  by  Joshua  Sharpless  and  John 
Pierce.  It  is  said  that  Cattaraugus  County,  New 
York,  within  which  they  settled  had  never  before  had 
a  white  inhabitant.  At  all  events  it  was  an  arduous 
journey  made  by  these  Friends  to  Pittsburgh  and 
thence  up  the  Allegheny  River.  At  Corn  Planter's  vil- 
lage they  accepted  the  friendly  hospitality  offered  by 
the  great  chieftain  and  enjoyed  some  friendly  inter- 
course with  the  Indians,  even  if  the  meal  cakes  dipped 
in  bear's  fat  did  not  appeal  greatly  to  their  appetites. 
The  location  at  Old  Town  was  finally  settled  upon  and 
the  two  older  Friends  returned  to  Philadelphia  by 
way  of  the  mission  station  among  the  Oneidas.^* 

The  work  at  Old  Town  continued  through  a  period 
of  six  years.  As  at  the  Oneida  mission  effort  was 
made  to  teach  the  Indians  the  ways  of  civilized  life  and 
at  the  same  time  to  influence  them  religiously.  Pre- 
miums were  offered  for  progress  in  agriculture  and 
by  precept  and  practice  the  resident  Friends  tried  to 
draw  the  Indians  from  the  careless,  improvident  ways 
of  the  hunter's  life. 

As  Friends  became  more  familiar  with  the  situation 
it  became  apparent  that  a  more  favorable  location 
could  be  selected  and  in  1804  the  mission  station  was 
removed  further  up  the  Allegheny  River.  "  On  view- 
ing a  creek  called  Tunesassah,"  report  the  prospecting 
Friends  who  were  seeking  a  new  location,  "  which  falls 

13  Other  workers  later  engaged  at  Old  Town  were  John  Pen- 
nock,  Jacob  Taylor,  Jonathan  Thomas  and  Vincent  Wiley. 

14  A  large  part  of  the  Journal  kept  by  Joshua  Sharpless  during 
this  journey  is  to  be  found  in  The  Friend  (Phila.),  21  (1847): 
14  ff. 


98  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

into  the  Allegheny  River  on  the  East  Side  about  two 
miles  above  Genesinguhta  (Old  Town),  we  found 
sufficient  water  to  work  a  saw  mill  and  a  convenient 
situation  to  build  one,  about  half  a  mile  from  the  In- 
dian reservation,  and  navigable  for  Canoes  to  and 
from  the  River  at  many  seasons. "^^  Here  at  Tune- 
sassa  the  new  station  was  located  and  this  vicinity  has 
been  the  special  field  of  labor  of  the  Philadelphia  Com- 
mittee since  that  time. 

It  is  not  possible  within  the  scope  of  this  treatise  to 
give  a  detailed  history  of  the  work  at  Tunesassa.  Only 
some  of  the  landmark  events  can  be  noticed  in  passing. 

A  tract  of  almost  700  acres  was  purchased  of  the 
Holland  Land  Company  and  early  in  1805  a  saw  and 
a  grist  mill  were  in  operation.  Workers  came  and 
went,  delegations  from  the  committee  in  Philadelphia 
journeyed  to  the  far  away  station  to  study  the  work 
at  first  hand,  and  gradually  the  Indians  became  familiar 
with  the  methods  of  civilized  life  and  the  aspirations 
of  the  Christian  faith. 

It  was  Joseph  Elkinton  who  established  the  school 
for  Indian  boys  at  Tunesassa.  Although  there  was 
much  opposition  at  first  on  the  part  of  some  Indians 
the  school  finally  became  a  permanent  part  of  the  mis- 
sion work.  At  first  Joseph  Elkinton  tried  to  hold  the 
school  on  the  Indian  reservation  as  it  would  there  be 
nearer  to  the  homes  of  the  children.  The  opposition 
of  the  conservative  party  among  the  Indians  was  how- 
ever too  great  and  in  1822  the  school  was  established 
on  the  mission  grounds.^^     Three  years  later  Mary* 

15  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :   189-190. 

16  Joseph  Elkinton  taught  a  school  at  Cold  Spring  as  early  as 
1816. — Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i :  18. 


TUNESASSA.  99 

Nutt,  afterward  the  wife  of  Joseph  Elkinton,  estab- 
lished a  school  for  girls.  These  schools  were  not 
greatly  appreciated  by  the  Indians  and  often  had  very 
few  scholars,  the  boys'  school  even  being  entirely  with- 
out attenders  at  some  periods. 

In  the  period  just  following  1830  the  Indians  were 
much  disturbed  by  the  plans  of  the  government  for 
removing  various  tribes  beyond  the  Mississippi  River 
and  the  situation  at  Tunesassa  became  so  discouraging 
that  all  mission  work  was  suspended  for  a  period  of 
five  years  beginning  in  1831. 

During  this  period  various  Friends  visited  the  In- 
dians in  the  vicinity  and  kept  in  touch  with  the  situ- 
ation, with  the  result  that  conditions  seemed  favorable 
for  reopening  the  work  in  1836. 

In  1843  Robert  Scotton  who  for  a  long  period  was 
active  and  zealous  in  the  Indian  work  ended  a  period 
of  service  at  Tunesassa  and  his  place  was  taken  by 
Ebenezer  Worth  who  was  sometimes  referred  to  as 
the  John  Woolman  of  his  day.  Under  the  regime  of 
Ebenezer  Worth  schools  were  maintained  at  Horse- 
shoe Bend  and  at  Corn  Planter's  village  while  he  per- 
sonally taught  one  at  Cold  Spring. 

About  1850  Friends  began  to  feel  distinctly  the  dis- 
advantages of  a  day  school,  that  had  to  depend  on  the 
caprice  of  the  Indian  children  and  their  parents  for 
attendance.  Consequently  in  1852  a  Boarding  School 
was  opened  at  Tunesassa  which  accommodated  six 
girls  as  boarders  besides  about  thirty  other  Indian  chil- 
dren who  attended  as  day  scholars.  Thus  began  a  type 
of  work  which  has  been  enlarged  and  improved  and 
which  has  been  without  doubt  the  most  successful 
method  developed  at  the  mission  station.    The  school 


100  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

plant  has  been  changed  and  enlarged  on  several  occa- 
sions and  after  it  was  burned  down  in  1886^^  a  com- 
modious two  story  building  was  erected  at  a  cost  of 
something  more  than  twelve  thousand  dollars.  This 
building  too  has  been  improved  and  enlarged  until  it 
offers  accommodations  at  the  present  time  for  about 
fifty-five  scholars  aside  from  the  apartments  devoted 
to  teachers  and  helpers. 

The  work  at  Tunesassa  has  now  entered  well  upon 
the  second  century  of  its  history  but  even  yet  it  is  im- 
possible to  measure  its  value  with  a  proper  perspective. 
The  work  has  been  slow  and  at  times  discouraging  as 
all  mission  work  among  the  Indians  has  been.  Yet 
some  idea  of  the  progress  may  be  gained  from  reports 
of  the  work  at  various  stages  in  its  history. 

Some  glimpse  of  the  life  of  the  Indians  when  Friends 
first  went  among  them  may  form  a  background  for 
viewing  their  later  improvement.  John  Phillips,  with 
Isaac  Bonsall  and  Halliday  Jackson,  visited  the  In- 
dians near  the  mission  in  1806  and  wrote  as  follows  of 
their  situation :  "  Many  of  their  houses  have  earthen 
floors  with  some  boards  along  each  side,  with  some 
deer  skins  spread  over  them,  which  serve  for  beds  and 
seats  to  sit  on.  When  they  eat  they  set  a  dirty  looking 
bowl  made  of  bark  in  the  middle  of  the  floor ;  each  one 
comes  and  cuts  a  piece  and  takes  it  in  his  hands  and 
sits  down  again  with  the  pigs  and  dogs  (of  which  they 
have  abundance)  running  about  the  floor.  .  .  .  Here 
and  there  as  we  travelled  about  we  saw  and  were  in 
divers  of  their  old  bark  cabins.     It  is  wonderful  to 

17  This  fire  occurred  just  at  the  close  of  the  service  of  Aaron 
P.  and  Eunice  Dewees  who  served  the  mission  long  and  accept- 
ably as  Superintendent  and  Matron. 


TUNESASSA    BOARDING   SCHOOL 


TUNESASSA.  101 

think  how  anybody  could  live  in  them  through  the 
winter  without  being  frozen. "^^ 

That  such  conditions  rapidly  yielded  to  the  ways  of 
civilized  life  is  indicated  by  a  letter  addressed  to  the 
Philadelphia  Committee  by  some  of  the  Chiefs  in  1816. 
Robert  Clendenon  and  his  wife  and  daughter  who  had 
been  residing  at  Tunesassa  were  leaving  at  that  time 
and  the  letter  was  written  in  part  to  express  the  regret 
of  the  Indians  at  their  departure.  The  Chiefs  ex- 
pressed sorrow  that  they  and  their  people  were  so  slow 
to  learn  and  so  quick  to  depart  from  the  right  way  even 
after  it  had  been  pointed  out  to  them.  Yet  they  made 
it  clear  that  some  progress  was  being  made :  "  It  is  in- 
deed a  long  time,  almost  twice  ten  years,  since  you  first 
held  out  your  hand  to  assist  us,  and  though  we  have 
not  improved  so  fast  as  you  might  have  expected ;  yet 
your  labor  has  not  all  been  lost.  When  your  friends 
first  sat  down  among  us,  we  had  not  one  comfortable 
shelter  to  accommodate  them  with ;  now,  we  have 
many  warm  and  pleasant,  and  some  spacious  and  even 
elegant  dwellings ;  many  of  our  women  can  spin  and 
have  wheels  in  their  houses,  and  a  number  of  us  have 
good  shelter  and  provender  for  cattle,  besides  corn, 
potatoes,  and  many  other  useful  vegetables  in  abun- 
dance."^^ 

The  manifold  attempts  and  the  resourceful  methods 
employed  to  interest  and  instruct  the  Indians  cannot 
be  more  than  illustrated  here.  The  devotion  of  Robert 
Scotton  was  shown  in  his  patient  attempts  to  instruct 
the  Indian  boys  in  the  use  of  tools,  especially  those  of 

18  Phila.  Y.  M.  Iiidn.  Comm.,  Filing  Case,  Misc.  Papers,  1803- 
1815. 

^0  The  Friend  (Phila.),  78  (1904):  91. 

8 


102  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

the  wheelwright.  The  vision  of  Joseph  Elkinton  was 
great  enough  to  move  him  to  the  attempt,  not  per- 
manently successful,  of  founding  as  early  as  1825  an 
"Aboriginal  Agricultural  Society"  among  the  Indians. 

The  Indian  women  too  received  a  full  share  of  in- 
struction and  encouragement  especially  from  the 
women  Friends  who  visited  at  the  mission  station  or 
resided  there  for  some  period.  Spinning,  weaving, 
knitting,  cooking  and  general  house  work  were  the  arts 
taught  to  the  Indian  women.  Thomazine  Valentine 
was  one  of  the  most  devoted  of  the  women  Friends 
engaged  in  this  work  and  one  of  her  letters  of  1866 
portrays  the  progress  that  had  been  made  at  that 
period :  "  I  have  felt  comforted  in  visiting  the  Indians 
this  time,  and  feel  there  is  cause  of  thankfulness,  that 
the  Lord  has  opened  the  hearts  of  the  Indian  women 
so  generally  to  attend  to  what  has  been  told  them  in 
regard  to  keeping  better  houses,  and  not  taking  of- 
fense. When  I  first  saw  them,  there  were  only  a  few 
right  clean  houses — now  the  clean  ones  quite  outnum- 
ber the  dirty  ones.  It  used  to  be  a  very  usual  thing 
to  find  their  houses  wuth  the  dishes  not  washed;  beds 
not  made,  nor  houses  swept.  I  think  I  have  not  found 
more  than  two  of  that  kind  this  time,  and  the  women 
were  in  poor  health  in  both  cases. "-^ 

The  improvement  of  the  children  in  the  elements  of 
learning  and  of  some  of  the  older  Indians  in  the  prac- 
tical duties  of  life  are  both  illustrated  in  the  following 
extract  from  a  well  written  essay  of  the  year  1879  ^Y 
Lydia  Jackson  who  was  a  scholar  at  Tunesassa  and 
later  a  teacher  among  the  Indians.  Speaking  of  the 
progress  of  her  people  in  agriculture  she  cites  the  fol- 

20  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  4:  159. 


TUNESASSA.  103 

lowing  examples :  "  Thomas  Jemison  of  Cattaraugus 
Reservation  who  raises  annually  a  thousand  bushels 
of  wheat,  John  Mt.  Pleasant  of  Tuscarora  Reservation 
who  raised  last  year  fifteen  hundred  bushels  of  oats 
and  sixteen  hundred  bushels  of  wheat,  five  hundred 
barrels  of  apples,  three  hundred  barrels  of  peaches  and 
beside  other  fruits  in  abundance,  he  has  a  beautiful 
farm  of  two  hundred  acres.  He  owns  two  reapers, 
one  mowing  machine  and  two  threshing  machines.  His 
wife  who  is  a  Seneca  woman  keeps  the  house  neat  and 
in  order.    They  milk  ten  cows."-^ 

While  the  above  illustrations  of  successful  farming 
were  not  taken  from  Allegheny  Reservation  yet  they 
serve  to  illustrate  the  general  progress  of  the  New 
York  Indians  in  which  the  mission  at  Tunesassa  was 
having  a  worthy  part. 

In  religious  matters  the  advancement  of  the  Indians 
was  also  slow  but  apparently  sure.  While  Friends 
were  giving  practical  instruction  in  agriculture  and  the 
mechanical  arts  they  always  had  as  their  ultimate  ob- 
ject the  religious  development  of  their  wards.  The 
Indian  boys  and  girls  in  the  schools  read  the  Scriptures 
and  memorized  portions  of  them.  It  is  said  that  the 
Indian  girl  Lydia  Jackson,  mentioned  above,  at  one 
time  committed  to  memory  in  about  two  hours  a  chap- 
ter of  the  New  Testament  containing  forty-two  verses. 
After  the  Boarding  School  was  opened  in  1852  there 
was  greater  opportunity  to  influence  the  children  in  a 
religious  way  by  precept  and  example,  in  the  class 
room,  in  the  meeting  for  worship,  and  in  the  daily 
round  of  work  about  the  mission  buildings  and  farm. 
While  many  of  the  Indians  thus  influenced  become 

21  The  Friend  (Phila.),  78  (1905)  :  406-407, 


104  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

only  nominal  Christians  yet  there  are  numerous  ex- 
amples of  those  who  have  become  truly  devout  in  pro- 
fession and  life  and  have  developed  a  profound  ap- 
preciation of  spiritual  values.  One  such  Indian  woman 
became  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Friends  in  1882 
and  many  others  in  their  lives  and  in  their  deaths  have 
manifested  a  genuine  Christian  faith. ^^ 

The  work  of  Friends  for  the  Seneca  Indians  was 
not  confined  to  those  who  lived  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  Tunesassa.  As  early  as  1799  some  of  the 
same  tribe  living  on  the  Cattaraugus  River  about  forty 
miles  northwest  of  Tunesassa,  applied  for  help  in  set- 
ting up  a  saw  mill.  This  request  was  promptly  com- 
plied with  by  the  Committee  and  in  the  following  years 
a  growing  interest  was  manifested  in  the  Cattaraugus 
Indians.  In  1803  the  Friends  who  selected  the  mission 
site  at  Tunesassa  continued  their  journey  and  visited 
some  of  the  Senecas  farther  north. ^^  As  a  result  of 
this  visit  some  help  was  extended  to  the  Senecas  at 
Tonawanda,  and  a  considerable  work  was  begun  for 
the  Cattaraugus  Indians  at  Clear  Creek.  At  the  latter 
place  about  500  acres  of  land  were  purchased  in  1808 
and  the  next  year,  a  house  having  been  built,  several 
Friends  went  to  occupy  it  and  aid  the  Indians  in  their 
attempt  to  adopt  a  settled  agricultural  life.^*  Saw  and 
grist  mills  were  erected  on  the  property  for  the  use  of 
the  Indians  and  care  was  taken  to  instruct  the  Indian 
women  in  the  arts  of  domestic  life.  At  times  in  the 
early  years  the  Indians  at  Cattaraugus  became  sus- 

22  Lives  and  Happy  Deaths  of  Some  Indians  Deceased,  19-32. 

23  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian  Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :   196  f. 

24  Benj.  Coope,  Jacob  Taylor,  Stephen  Twining  and  Hannah 
Jackson  arrived  at  Clear  Creek  in  1809.  Phila.  Y.  M.  Indian 
Comm.,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :  301. 


TUNESASSA.  105 

picious  for  fear  Friends  would  at  some  time  bring  a 
claim  against  them  for  services  rendered  but  by  send- 
ing written  assurances  to  the  contrary  the  Committee 
was  able  to  quiet  these  fears. 

In  1815  a  part  of  the  land  held  by  the  Committee 
was  sold  to  Jacob  Taylor,  one  of  the  Friends  who  had 
been  stationed  at  the  mission.  The  land  sold  contained 
the  mills  and  these  were  thenceforth  operated  as  private 
property  although  it  was  provided  in  the  terms  of  sale 
that  the  Indians  should  have  their  grist  ground  for 
one  year  free  of  toll.  Jacob  Taylor  continued  his  in- 
terest in  the  welfare  of  the  Indians  and  for  several 
years  after  the  extensive  service  of  the  Committee  at 
Cattaraugus  was  ended  (in  181 5)  he  continued  as 
agent  and  correspondent  for  the  Committee. 

For  a  short  time  the  Committee  supplied  a  teacher 
for  the  Cattaraugus  Indians  but  the  attempt  was  dis- 
continued because  the  Indians  were  not  united  in  sup- 
port of  the  school. 

In  1821  even  the  agency  of  Jacob  Taylor  was  dis- 
continued and  although  the  balance  of  the  land  owned 
by  the  Committee  was  not  disposed  of  for  about  thirty 
years  thereafter,  the  active  efforts  of  the  Committee 
in  that  section  were  discontinued. 

Thus  far  this  account  of  the  work  done  by  the  Phila- 
delphia Committee  for  the  Seneca  Indians  has  been 
largely  confined  to  the  history  of  the  mission  establish- 
ments at  Tunesassa  and  Cattaraugus.  Yet  that  is 
only  part  of  the  story.  No  phase  of  the  Indian's  life 
and  interests  was  without  the  pale  of  Friendly  interest 
and  no  corresponding  opportunity  to  aid  the  Indians 
was  lost.  At  Corn  Planter's  village,  Tunesassa,  Clear 
Creek,  Tonawanda,  Buffalo  Creek,  indeed  wherever  the 


106  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Indians  were  in  need,  they  found  the  Quakers  ready 
to  aid  them  with  advice,  money,  tools,  or  influence 
with  officers  of  the  government. 

In  rehgious  matters  the  influence  of  those  regularly 
in  charge  at  the  mission  was  supplemented  by  efforts 
of  visiting  Friends  and  by  letters  of  advice  and  ad- 
monition sent  by  the  Committee  at  Philadelphia.  Dur- 
ing the  war  of  1812  Friends  used  every  endeavor  to 
dissuade  the  Indians  from  taking  part  in  the  hostilities. 
Another  subject  of  vital  concern  to  Friends  was  the 
use  of  alcoholic  liquors  by  the  Indians.  In  season  and 
out  of  season  were  the  natives  admonished  to  abstain 
from  this  evil.  Against  punishments  for  witchcraft 
and  against  laxity  in  observance  of  marital  bonds 
Friends  constantly  used  their  influence.  In  the  early 
years  of  the  Committee  many  Indian  children  were 
trained  in  the  homes  of  Friends  and  at  all  periods  the 
Committee  was  ready  to  aid  the  Indians  in  securing 
fair  treatment  in  their  dealings  with  the  white  man 
and  the  white  man's  government.^^ 

This  brief  account  of  the  work  of  the  Philadelphia 
Committee  may  be  appropriately  closed  by  a  consid- 
eration of  the  present  status  and  problems  of  the  mis- 
sion at  Tunesassa. 

The  work  is  still  carried  on  under  the  direction  and 
by  the  support  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  al- 
though during  the  past  forty  years  most  of  the  super- 
intendents and  helpers  at  the  mission  have  come  from 
western  states,  notably  Ohio. 

25  In  the  years  1838-1842  the  Phila.  Comm,  had  a  part  in  try- 
ing to  protect  the  Senecas  in  the  possession  of  their  New  York 
lands.  This  work  was  chiefly  done  however  by  Liberal  Friends. 
See  below,  pp.  1 19-124. 


TUNESASSA.  107 

The  regular  expenses  for  maintaining  the  school 
during  the  year  1916-1917  amounted  to  about  $8,000. 
Of  this  sum  $3,500  was  appropriated  by  Philadelphia 
Yearly  Meeting  and  the  balance  was  met  largely  by 
the  income  from  permanent  investments,  and  the 
profits  from  the  operation  of  the  mission  farm.  Aside 
from  regular  expenses  the  sum  of  $1,516.25  was  ex- 
pended for  a  new  electric  light  plant. 

One  of  the  interesting  activities  at  the  mission  in 
recent  years  has  been  the  development  of  a  splendid 
herd  of  cattle  with  attention  given  to  modern  methods 
of  feeding  and  the  care  of  the  milk.  A  butter  making 
business  is  carried  on  and  this  serves  as  a  useful  object- 
lesson  not  only  to  the  pupils  but  also  to  the  older  In- 
dians who  visit  the  school. 

Various  improvements  have  been  made  from  time 
to  time  in  the  general  equipment  of  the  establishment. 
The  attendance  is  usually  about  fifty,  quite  equally 
divided  between  boys  and  girls,  and  in  recent  years  the 
applications  for  admission  have  at  times  exceeded  the 
capacity  of  the  school.  Most  of  the  pupils  come  from 
the  Allegheny  and  Cattaraugus  reservations. 

A  problem  has  developed  with  the  extension  of  the 
public  school  system  among  the  Indians.  The  tendency 
has  arisen  to  send  the  older  children  to  the  public  day 
schools  in  order  to  have  them  at  home  outside  of 
school  hours.  As  a  result  it  is  largely  the  younger 
children  that  are  sent  to  the  Friends'  boarding  school. 
Such  pupils  are  not  so  well  able  to  help  in  the  daily 
work  of  the  farm  and  mission  home  as  were  the  older 
pupils  of  an  earlier  period.  Nor  do  their  parents 
usually  leave  them  in  the  school  long  enough  for  them 
to  receive  the  full  influence  for  good  that  is  desired  by 
Friends. 


108  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

One  of  the  latest  tendencies  in  the  management  of 
the  school  has  been  to  extend  and  systematize  the  in- 
struction in  the  useful  industrial  arts.  Manual  train- 
ing for  the  hoys  and  practical  domestic  science  for  the 
girls  have  proved  useful  as  well  as  popular  studies  for 
the  pupils.  A  recent  superintendent  writes,  "  The 
boys  scarcely  can  wait  for  their  turn  in  the  shop."  In 
the  case  of  the  girls  the  training  in  domestic  science  is 
at  least  partially  overcoming  the  difficulty  mentioned 
above  by  holding  them  in  the  school  longer  than  they 
would  otherwise  remain. 

So  the  modern  move  toward  Industrial  training  is 
being  promptly  adopted  by  the  Indian  school  at  Tune- 
sassa  and  other  contemplated  improvements  promise 
to  hold  the  instruction  there  abreast  of  the  times.^^ 

Such  is  the  story,  briefly  told,  of  the  work  done  since 
1795  by  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  through  its 
"  Committee  for  Promoting  the  Improvement  and 
Gradual  CiviHzation  of  the  Indian  Natives."  This 
work,  be  it  remembered,  has  been  done  at  all  periods  in 
the  face  of  the  great  discouragements  always  incidental 
to  such  a  task.  The  object  of  this  sketch  has  been  to 
record  the  things  accomplished.  Yet  the  Friends  who 
did  the  work  were  often  well  nigh  overwhelmed  by  a 
realization  of  what  they  failed  to  accomplish.  Often 
the  Indians  were  too  lazy  or  too  prejudiced  to  desire 
the  ways  of  civilized  life.  At  times  during  the  first 
three  or  four  decades  of  the  work  the  old  conservative 
pagan  faction  among  the  Indians  seemed  determined 
and  well  nigh  able  to  checkmate  all  efforts  toward  civil- 

26  The  above  sketch  of  the  recent  developments  at  Tunesassa 
has  been  compiled  from  the  annual  Reports  of  the  Phila.  Indian 
Comm.,  printed  in  the  Extracts  from  the  Minutes  of  Phila. 
Yearly  Meeting. 


TUNESASSA.  109 

ization  and  Christianity.  Again  individual  Indians 
who  had  received  training  at  the  school  or  helpful  ad- 
vice in  the  community  v^ould  lapse  hopelessly  into  the 
old  shiftless  savage  life.  Yet  on  the  whole  it  is  im- 
possible to  read  the  description  of  the  situation  as  it 
was  found  in  1798  and  know  the  Indians  as  they  are 
to-day  without  realizing  that  Friends  have  builded 
well  in  their  work  among  the  Allegheny  Senecas. 

Within  the  Committee  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meet- 
ing during  the  past  few  years  there  has  developed  a 
desire  to  foster  more  actively  the  religious  and  spir- 
itual life  of  the  Indian  children  in  the  school  and  of 
the  adult  Indians  and  their  families  generally.  This 
desire  has  had  cordial  response  from  the  workers  at 
Tunesassa  several  of  whom  in  the  more  recent  period 
have  been  members  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting. 

The  following  quotation  may  serve  as  a  fitting  close 
to  the  story  of  this  work.  It  is  the  expression  of  the 
first  generation  of  those  who  undertook  the  task.  It 
shows  that  they  understood  the  difficulties  confronting 
them  and  that  their  perseverance  and  faith  were  not 
unequal  to  the  task : 

"In  the  Prosecution  of  a  Work  like  this,  subject  to 
Impediments  thro'  the  Prejudice  of  long  established 
Habits  and  the  common  Disinclination  of  the  Natives 
to  Industry,  the  Progress  may  seem  slow  and  its  Ef- 
fects but  little,  yet  patient  Perseverance  being  abode 
in,  an  unshaken  Hope  is  at  Times  vouchsafed,  that  as 
the  Concern  did  not  originate  in  the  devices  of  human 
Wisdom,  He  that  hath  begun  it  will,  as  we  are  subject 
to  the  Leadings  of  his  holy  Spirit,  be  pleased  to  carry 
it  on  and  bless  it  to  that  People. "^'^ 

27  Phila.  Y.  M.  for  Sufferings,  MS.  Minutes,  4:  155,  In  an 
epistle  of  1809  to  the  London  Mtg.  for  Sufferings. 


110  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   NOTE. 

The  chief  manuscript  materials  for  the  field  covered 
in  this  chapter  are:  the  Minutes  (1795  following)  of  the 
Indian  Committee  of  Phila.  Yearly  Meeting;  the 
Minutes  (especially  for  the  period  1790-1795)  of  the 
Meeting  for  Sufferings  of  Phila.  Yearly  Meeting; 
several  filing  cases  of  misc.  papers  of  Indian  Comm.  of 
Phila.  Y.  M.;  Indian  Records  1 502-187 s,  9  vols.,  being 
MS.  transcripts  of  misc.  papers  prepared  by  Joseph  S. 
Elkinton. — These  manuscripts  are  preserved  in  a  vault  on 
the  Yearly  Meeting  grounds  at  Fourth  and  Arch  Sts., 
Philadelphia. 

The  printed  materials  that  have  been  useful  are:  The 
Conduct  of  Friends  (1844),  see  Bibliographical  Note  at 
close  of  Chapter  IV  above;  occasional  pamphlets  pub- 
lished by  Phila.  Y.  M.  descriptive  of  its  work  for  the 
Indians,  as  listed  in  Smith,  Catalogue  of  Friends'  Books, 
vol.  I,  pp.  783-785 ;  also  an  account  by  George  J.  Scatter- 
good  printed  in  The  Friend,  Phila.,  vol.  yy  (May  21, 
1904)  to  vol.  79  (Aug.  12,  1905)  ;  a  briefer  account  by 
Joseph  Elkinton  in  The  Friend,  Phila.,  vol.  87  (1914), 
p.  458  ff. ;  see  also  Buffalo  Hist.  Soc.  Publications,  18: 
169-189;  various  short  biographies  and  other  treatises  at 
the  Friends'  Book  Store,  304  Arch  St.,  Philadelphia. 


CHAPTER  VL 

FURTHER  WORK  IN  THE  EAST. 

When  the  Friends  of  Philadelphia  were  aroused  to 
further  efforts  for  the  Indians  in  1793  they  communi- 
cated their  "  concern  "  through  their  Meeting  for  Suf- 
ferings to  other  Yearly  Meetings.  So  it  came  about 
that  Friends  in  other  parts  had  their  interest  in  the  In- 
dians renewed  and  by  1795  a  general  advance  move- 
ment of  the  work  of  Friends  for  the  Indians  was 
under  way. 

The  result  of  this  new  movement  in  the  establish- 
ment of  a  work  among  the  Indians  of  Ohio  and  other 
parts  of  the  west  will  be  described  in  subsequent  chap- 
ters. The  further  work  in  the  east  was  that  under- 
taken by  New  England  Yearly  Meeting  on  behalf  of 
certain  New  England  tribes,  and  by  New  York  Friends 
for  some  of  the  tribes  of  that  state  other  than  those 
under  the  special  care  of  the  Philadelphia  Committee. 

The  desire  to  aid  the  Indians  who  were  in  need 
arose  in  New  England  Yearly  Meeting  in  1795,  and 
for  six  years  thereafter  the  matter  received  the  atten- 
tion of  New  England  Friends.  The  Meeting  for  Suf- 
ferings^ gathered  information  about  the  condition  and 
needs  of  the  Indians  in  New  England  but  no  plan  was 
evolved  for  a  permanent  work  among  them.^ 

1  The  Meeting  for  Sufferings  was  the  administrative  com- 
mittee that  handled  the  affairs  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  in  the  in- 
tervals between  the  annual  sessions. 

2  However,  a  special  committee  of  the  Meeting  for  Sufferings 

111 


112  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

During  the  first  two  decades  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury Friends  of  New  England  gave  their  special  at- 
tention to  the  matter  of  establishing  a  school  for  the 
education  of  their  own  children.  Yet  they  were  not 
entirely  forgetful  of  the  Indian  question  and  in  1818 
promptly  accepted  a  suggestion  from  Baltimore  Friends 
and  prepared  accordingly  a  memorial  to  the  federal 
government  calling  attention  to  the  needs  and  rights 
of  the  Indians.^ 

The  most  important  work  of  New  England  Friends 
for  the  eastern  Indians  was  for  the  Penobscot  and 
Passamaquoddy  tribes  of  the  state  of  Maine.*  The 
attention  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  was  turned  to  the 
Penobscot  Indians^  in  1820  at  the  suggestion  of  the 
Governor  of  Maine  and  a  work  was  begun  with  the  co- 
reported  (Jan.  1801)  having  expended  $189.55  to  help  five  fami- 
lies of  Narraganset  Indians  remove  to  some  lands  provided  for 
them  among  the  Oneidas  in  New  York. — This  special  committee 
seems  to  have  been  the  first  Indian  Comm.  of  New  Engd.  Y.  M. 
and  was  composed  of  Wm.  Knowles,  Thos.  Wilber,  and  Thos, 
Howland. 

3  This  memorial,  dated  10/9/ 18 18,  was  drawn  up  by  Wm. 
Rotch,  Jr.,  Abm.  Shearman,  Jr.,  and  Thos.  Arnold,  and  was  signed 
by  Saml.  Rodman,  Clerk  of  the  Mtg.  for  Sufferings. — There  is 
almost  classic  beauty  in  the  spirit  and  words  of  the  memorial 
as  witness  the  closing  statement :  "  And  it  is  our  fervent  desire 
and  prayer  to  Almighty  God,  the  father  and  preserver  of  the 
whole  human  family,  that  he  would  enlighten  the  minds  of  our 
Rulers,  clearly  to  see,  and  inspire  their  hearts  with  a  disposition 
to  pursue  that  perfect  rule  of  justice  and  charity,  which  would 
preserve  the  character  of  our  own  Country  pure  and  unsullied 
by  any  imputation  of  unjust  or  ambitious  motives." 

4  Work  for  the  Indians  west  of  the  Mississippi  River  claimed 
the  attention  of  New  England  Yearly  Meeting  from  the  year 
1837   onward.     See  below. 

5  The  Penobscot  and  Passamaquoddy  Indians  are  the  most  im- 
portant tribes  within  the  State  of  Maine.  The  U.  S.  Census  of 
1910  gives  their  numbers  as  253  for  the  Penobscot  and  381  for 
the  Passamaquoddy  tribe. 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  113 

operation  of  two  Friends,  Samuel  F.  Hussey  and 
Jackson  Davis,  who  were  Indian  Agents  of  that  state. 
At  that  time  the  hunting  and  fishing  pursuits  of  the 
Penobscot  Indians  were  faihng  to  produce  a  Hvehhood 
and  Friends  by  various  means  encouraged  the  In- 
dians to  take  up  a  settled  life  of  agricultural  pursuits. 
Members  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  Committee  visited  the 
Indians  at  proper  seasons  to  help  them  in  seeding  and 
to  instruct  them  in  the  care  of  crops.  In  one  of  the 
early  years  a  present  of  windows  and  nails  was  made 
to  a  progressive  Indian  family  engaged  in  building  a 
frame  dwelling  house.^  The  Indians  were  also  in- 
structed and  encouraged  in  their  religious  life  although 
the  work  of  Friends  in  this  direction  was  somewhat 
limited  by  the  fact  that  the  Penobscots  and  Passama- 
quoddies  adhered  largely  to  the  Catholic  faith.  Ear- 
nest efforts  were  however  made  by  Friends  to  dissuade 
the  Indians  from  the  use  of  liquor  which  in  Maine  as 
elsewhere  was  the  ever  present  curse  of  the  natives. 

The  interest  which  was  aroused  for  the  Passama- 
quoddy  tribe  about  1838  continued  unabated  although 
members  of  the  committee  could  not  often  visit  them 
on  account  of  their  distant  location  on  the  far  eastern 
borders  of  Maine. 

In  the  last  two  decades  of  the  work  in  the  field  the 
committee  was  especially  interested  in  visiting  the  In- 
dian schools  and  encouraging  that  phase  of  the  work  in 
every  possible  way.  Finally,  however,  the  opportuni- 
ties for  usefulness  seemed  to  be  more  and  more  limited 
and  in  1879  the  committee  at  its  own  request  was  re- 
leased from  further  service."^ 

6  Report  of  1825. 

7  Stephen  Jones  and  John  D.  Lang  were  active  members  of  the 
committee  through  all  the  later  years  of  this  work.  A  number 
of  Women  Friends  were  added  to  the  Committee  in  1875, 


114  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

While  no  regular  mission  station  or  school  was 
established  by  Friends  among  the  Indians  of  Maine 
there  is  little  doubt  that  the  visits  and  counsel  of  the 
representatives  of  New  England  Friends  were  of  real 
help  to  the  Indians  in  the  critical  stage  of  their  tran- 
sition to  the  settled  habits  and  activities  of  civilized 
Hfe.« 

New  York  Yearly  Meeting. 

The  other  and  greater  field  of  Friends'  missionary 
activity  for  the  eastern  Indians  was  among  those  of 
New  York  state.  Here  to  the  war  famed  tribes  of  the 
Six  Nations  came  the  Friends  of  New  York  and  Phila- 
delphia on  their  errands  of  peace  and  good  will.^ 
Philadelphia  Friends  did  their  permanent  work  among 
the  Senecas  in  the  western  part  of  the  state,  as  de- 
scribed in  the  preceding  chapter.  New  York  Friends 
labored  among  the  tribes  farther  east. 

The  attention  of  New  York  Friends  was  directed  to 
the  Indian  situation  in  1793  by  a  letter  from  the  Meet- 
ing for  Sufferings  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting. 
The  way  did  not  seem  open  for  any  service  at  that 
time  but  two  years  later  the  Yearly  Meeting  took  up 
the  "  concern  "  by  appointing  a  committee  to  cooperate 
with  the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  in  dealing  with  the 
subject.^^ 

In   order  to  get   the  needful   information   a    few 

8  Authorities  consulted  for  the  above  sketch  of  the  work  of 
New  England  Y.  M. :  MS.  Records  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  and 
the  Meeting  for  Sufferings  down  to  1846;  after  that  the  printed 
Minutes  of  the  Yearly  Meeting. 

8  For  the  work  of  New  York  and  Phila.  Friends  for  the  west- 
ern Indians  see  below,  p.  147  and  chapters  VIII  and  IX. 

10  New  York  Yearly  Meeting,  MS.  Minutes,  i  :  351. 


FURTHER   WORK    IN    THE    EAST.  115 

Friends  made  an  extended  tour  of  the  Indian  settle- 
ments in  the  state  and  made  a  full  report  of  conditions 
as  they  found  them.^^  In  the  years  immediately  fol- 
lowing this  visit,  members  of  the  Indian  Committee 
and  other  Friends  made  frequent  visits  among  the 
Indians,  encouraging  them  in  their  efforts  for  religious 
and  economic  advancement  and  studying  their  situ- 
ation with  a  view  to  a  more  definite  work  among  them. 

This  more  definite  work  was  begun  in  1807  when  a 
Friend,  John  Dean,  and  his  family  were  secured  by 
the  Committee  to  reside  among  the  Brotherton  In- 
dians. This  policy  of  having  some  Friends  reside 
among  the  Indians  proved  very  helpful  and  was  there- 
after adopted  by  the  committee  whenever  finances  and 
other  conditions  warranted  it.^^ 

The  decade  following  1807  was  the  period  of  great- 
est prosperity  for  the  work  of  New  York  Friends  for 
the  Indians  of  that  state.  Friends  became  interested 
especially  in  the  Oneida,  Onondaga,  Stockbridge,  and 
Brotherton  Indians.^^ 

11  For  report  of  this  committee  see  N.  Y.  Yearly  Meeting,  MS. 
Minutes,  i :  342-349.    See  also  Friends  Review^  5  (1852)  :  778  ff. 

12  Other  Friends  who  resided  among  the  Indians  at  various 
periods  were :  Absalom  and  Ruth  Hatfield,  Charles  Willetts,  and 
Adin  T.  Cory  and  family.  The  MS.  Minutes  refer  to  others  with- 
out mentioning  their  names. 

13  The  Brotherton  and  Stockbridge  bands  were  Algonquian 
Indians  from  New  England  settled  on  Oneida  lands  at  the  invita- 
tion of  the  latter  nation.  The  Oneidas  and  Onondagas  were  Iro- 
quoian  and  members  of  the  Confederacy  of  the  Six  Nations. 
Mention  was  made  in  the  preceding  chapter,  p.  96,  of  how 
Friends  of  Phila.  transferred  their  work  from  the  Oneidas  to  the 
Senecas  when  New  York  Friends  became  interested  in  the  for- 
mer nation.  During  this  period  (in  1826  and  1827)  Thomas 
Shillitoe,  an  English  Friend,  visited  and  preached  to  several  of 
the  Indian  tribes  in  New  York  and  Canada. — See  Friends'  Li- 
brary, 3 :  364-383. 


116  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Various  were  the  activities  of  Friends  among  these 
tribes.  At  times  a  school  was  taught  by  a  Friend  or 
the  committee  would  aid  in  the  support  of  a  school 
taught  by  an  educated  Indian.  Much  instruction  was 
given  to  the  Indians  in  methods  of  agriculture  and 
farming  implements  were  furnished  on  occasion. 
"Brothers,"  wrote  the  Onondagas  in  1811,  "we  are  in 
want  of  cattle,  chains,  ploughs,  and  all  kinds  of  farm- 
ing utensils,  ...  we  have  opened  our  eyes — we  now 
see  that  we  must  work.  We  are  willing  to  work;  we 
begin  to  raise  wheat  and  will  do  more  if  we  can  get 
help."  To  this  appeal  Friends  responded  in  goodly 
measure.  Oxen  and  tools  were  supplied  in  this  in- 
stance, and  at  another  time  sheep  were  purchased  and 
loaned  to  various  Indian  families  in  succession  until 
each  could  get  started  in  sheep  husbandry.  A  black- 
smith was  sent  out  to  teach  the  Indians  his  trade. 

At  the  same  time  women  Friends  devoted  them- 
selves to  the  instruction  of  the  Indian  women  who 
were  taught  to  sew,  spin,  weave,  cook,  and  carry  on 
the  various  concerns  of  the  household.  At  one  time 
two  Indian  girls  were  taken  by  the  committee  to  be 
educated  in  the  vicinity  of  New  York  and  several 
girls  were  at  one  time  placed  for  training  in  the  homes 
of  various  Friends. 

The  variety  of  the  services  rendered  by  Friends 
may  be  further  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  at  one  time 
about  one  thousand  Oneida  and  Stockbridge  Indians 
were  vaccinated  through  the  efforts  of  Friends  on  ac- 
count of  a  small-pox  epidemic.  Moreover,  again  and 
again  were  the  Indians  counseled  and  exhorted  to 
stop  the  ravages  of  alcohol  among  themselves  by  turn- 
ing their  backs  upon  that  ever  present  curse  of  the  Red 
Man. 


FURTHER   WORK    IN    THE    EAST.  117 

Nor  were  the  efforts  of  Friends  confined  entirely  to 
the  tribes  mentioned  above.  The  Montauk  and  Shinne- 
cock  Indians  on  Long  Island,  the  Tonawandas  and 
other  branches  of  the  Seneca  nation  in  western  New 
York,  received  advice  or  material  assistance  as  occa- 
sion required. 

Of  all  the  Indians  aided  by  New  York  Friends  the 
Onondagas  seemed  to  respond  most  encouragingly  to 
the  efforts  of  the  committee.  Over  and  over  again 
the  committee  reported  the  good  results  obtained 
among  this  nation  of  the  Iroquois,  especially  mention- 
ing the  almost  total  absence  of  intemperance  among 
them.  It  was  among  these  Indians  that  Adin  T.  Cory 
and  his  family  did  a  splendid  work  during  the  later 
years  of  the  committee's  efforts.  In  1825  some  repre- 
sentatives of  the  committee  visited  these  Indians  and 
reported  that  considerable  quantities  of  grain  had  been 
sold  by  this  nation  over  and  above  the  amount  needed 
for  their  own  consumption.  The  Indian  girls  were 
also  showing  much  progress  in  spinning,  weaving,  and 
other  domestic  industries.^* 

About  1820  there  began  to  be  great  unsettlement 
among  the  Indians  of  New  York  on  account  of  the 
pressure  being  brought  to  bear  upon  them  to  move 
with  other  Indian  tribes  to  lands  in  the  western  states 
and  territories.  This  agitation  soon  began  to  interfere 
with  the  work  of  Friends  among  them  and  by  1830 
most  of  the  Indians  among  whom  the  Friends  of  New 
York  had  so  long  labored  had  left  their  old  homes  and 
followed  the  westward  trail.^^ 

1*  N.  Y.  Yearly  Meeting,  MS.  Minutes,  3:  41, 

15  The    principal    source    materials   used    in    the    foregoing   ac- 
count were  the  manuscript  Minutes  of  New  York  Yearly  Meeting 
and  of  the  Indian  Committee  of  the  same  Yearly  Meeting. 
9 


118  friends  and  the  indians. 

Efforts  of  Liberal  Friends. 

At  the  same  time  that  the  Indians  were  becoming 
unsettled  by  the  westward  movement  the  Society  of 
Friends  was  divided  into  two  opposing  factions  by 
the  unhappy  separation  of  1828.  In  New  York  Yearly 
Meeting  the  Liberal  branch  of  Friends  received  the 
funds  of  the  Indian  Committee  and  continued  to  labor 
among  those  Indians  that  did  not  migrate  to  the  west.^^ 

In  the  decade  following  1830  the  chief  interest  of 
New  York  Friends  (Liberal)  was  gradually  trans- 
ferred from  the  Onondag^.  nation  to  that  branch  of 
the  Seneca  nation  dwelling  at  Cattaraugus.  It  was 
felt  that  the  Onondagas  had  received  sufficient  help 
and  instruction  to  enable  them  to  make  due  progress 
without  the  special  aid  of  Friends.  Therefore,  al- 
though the  committee  kept  in  friendly  touch  with  them 
at  all  times,  the  greater  effort  was  exerted  among  the 
Senecas  at  Cattaraugus,  where  a  Friend's  family  was 
soon  established  and  a  school  opened  (1833).^^ 

The  work  thus  begun  at  Cattaraugus  was  similar  to 
the  work  done  among  other  New  York  tribes  as  de- 
scribed earlier  in  this  chapter.  It  is  not  necessary 
therefore  to  follow  it  in  detail  especially  since  it  was 

16  New  York  Friends  had  received  $6000  from  a  fund  of 
money  provided  about  1807  by  English  Friends  for  the  work  of 
American  Friends  among  the  Indians.  The  Treasurer  of  this 
fund  and  Adin  T.  Cory,  the  Friend  residing  among  the  Onon- 
dagas, adhered  to  the  Liberal  branch.  As  a  result  the  Indian 
Committee  of  N.  Y.  Orthodox  Friends  was  released  in  1832  and 
the  Indian  work  of  that  branch  ceased  for  a  few  years. 

17  Griffith  M.  Cooper  and  family  took  charge  of  this  work  in 
1836.  About  the  same  time  the  work  was  placed  under  the  direct 
care  of  the  newly  established  Genessee  Yearly  Meeting  which 
was  in  closer  proximity  to  the  Indians.  New  York  Yearly  Meet- 
ing continued  however  its  support  of  the  effort. 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  119 

soon  overshadowed  by  the  great  and  splendid  effort 
of  various  Yearly  Meetings  to  protect  the  Seneca  In- 
dians in  the  ownership  of  their  lands. 

A  preemptive  right  to  the  lands  of  the  Seneca  na- 
tion had  been  long  held  by  an  organization  known  as 
the  Ogden  Land  Company .^^  This  preemptive  claim 
merely  gave  to  the  company  the  exclusive  right  to 
purchase  the  Indian  lands  when  the  Indians  should 
choose  to  sell.  According  to  treaty  right  the  Senecas 
could  not  be  compelled  to  part  with  their  lands.  Yet 
the  Ogden  Land  Company  was  greatly  interested  in 
encouraging  the  Indians  to  sell,  and  at  the  period 
under  consideration  it  had  become  the  settled  policy 
of  the  United  States  Government  to  encourage  or 
compel  the  various  Indian  tribes  of  the  east  to  remove 
beyond  the  Mississippi  River.  Consequently  any  move 
supported  by  the  Ogden  Land  Company  to  secure  the 
removal  of  the  Seneca  nation  was  likely  to  get  con- 
siderable support  from  the  executive  and  legislative 
branches  of  the  government  at  Washington. 

It  is  impossible  within  the  scope  of  this  chapter  to 
give  the  details  of  the  struggle  that  took  place  between 
the  years  1838  and  1842  over  the  question  of  the  re- 
moval of  the  Senecas  to  the  west,  and  the  efforts  of 
Friends  to  help  these  Indians  retain  their  New  York 
lands. 

The  basis  for  the  struggle  was  laid  in  a  Council  held 

18  This  claim  had  been  purchased  of  former  owners  in  1810 
by  David  A.  Ogden  who  later  formed  the  Ogden  Land  Co.  The 
meaning  and  extent  of  this  "  preemptive  claim  "  has  been  and  is 
still  a  much  controverted  subject  but  at  the  period  under  dis- 
cussion the  company  was  trying  merely  to  exercise  the  right  of 
first  purchaser  when  the  Indians  could  be  induced  to  sell.  For 
a  recent  investigation  of  this  case  see  U.  S.  63d  Cong.,  3d  Sess., 
House  Doc.  No.  1590. 


120  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

with  the  Senecas  in  1838  near  the  city  of  Buffalo  at 
which  some  of  the  Seneca  Chiefs  signed  a  treaty- 
agreeing  to  cede  their  New  York  lands.  When  this 
matter  came  to  the  attention  of  Friends  they  had  reason 
to  believe  the  treaty  had  been  secured  by  fraud  and  so 
they  undertook  to  protect  the  Indians  in  their  right  to 
the  lands  in  question.  In  this  effort  the  Indian  Com- 
mittees of  Genessee,  New  York,  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore  Yearly  Meetings  (Liberal)  united.^^ 

The  Indian  custom  of  setthng  tribal  matters  by  a 
Council  of  Chiefs  was  open  to  those  dangers  of  bribery 
and  corruption  that  have  menaced  all  governments  of 
every  age  in  which  great  power  is  concentrated  in  the 
hands  of  a  few  people.  The  opportunity  was  clearly 
present  in  this  case  for  the  Ogden  Land  Company  to 
secure  thousands  of  acres  of  very  valuable  land  at  a 
nominal  cost  by  trading  on  the  venality  of  a  few  In- 
dian Chiefs. 

That  such  corruption  had  been  practiced  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Joint  Committee  soon  convinced  them- 
selves. They  gathered  evidence  supported  by  affi- 
davits to  prove  that  the  grossest  forms  of  fraud  and 
bribery  had  been  practiced.  It  appeared  that  various 
Indian  Chiefs  had  been  paid  large  sums  of  money  to 
sign  the  treaty  and  to  favor  it  among  their  friends ; 
that  some  who  had  never  been  duly  elected  Chiefs  had 
signed  the  document;  that  the  names  of  others  ap- 
peared on  the  treaty  without  their  knowledge  or  au- 
thorization ;  that  less  than  half  of  the  names  appended 
to  the  treaty  had  been  secured  "  in  open  Council "  as 

10  Orthodox  Friends  of  New  York,  Phila.,  and  Baltimore  also 
made  some  representations  to  the  government  at  the  beginning 
of  the  trouble  but  the  chief  effort  was  put  forth  by  Liberal 
Friends. 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  121 

the  United  States  Senate  had  stipulated.  Most  flagrant 
of  all  the  abuses  seemed  to  be  this,  that  some  of  the 
Chiefs  had  received  not  only  money  but  a  promise 
of  large  tracts  of  land  in  the  reservation  to  be  deeded 
to  them  in  fee  simple.  Thus  the  so-called  "emigra- 
tion Chief  "  v^ould  sign  away  the  reservation  lands  and 
compel  his  people  to  emigrate  while  he  and  his  heirs 
would  be  permitted  to  live  and  die  on  their  native 
ground. 

So  convincing  was  the  evidence  presented  that 
President  Van  Buren  transmitted  the  treaty  to  the 
Senate  stating  in  his  message  that  the  conditions  for 
receiving  the  assent  of  the  Senecas  had  not  been 
properly  fulfilled  and  that  there  was  good  reason  to 
believe  "  improper  means  "  had  been  employed  to  in- 
fluence the  Seneca  Chiefs. 

The  Joint  Committee  of  Friends  now  felt  that  their 
arduous  labors  were  about  to  be  rewarded  and  they 
sent  a  memorial  to  the  Senate  presenting  the  same 
facts  that  they  had  previously  laid  before  the  President. 
What  then  was  their  surprise  and  grief  to  see  the 
Senate,  by  a  bare  majority  that  included  the  casting 
vote  of  the  Vice-President,  ratify  the  treaty  by  which 
it  was  alleged  the  Seneca  Indians  had  fairly  alienated 
all  of  their  New  York  lands  to  the  Ogden  Land  Com- 
pany. 

Friends  immediately  returned  tO'  President  Van 
Buren  to  strengthen  his  hands  in  refusing  the  treaty 
when  their  disappointment  was  changed  to  despair  by 
hearing  from  him  that,  since  the  Senate  with  all  the 
facts  before  it  had  ratified  the  treaty,  he  could  not  feel 
justified  in  rejecting  it. 

Little  has  been  said  in  the  account  thus  far  of  the 


122  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

various  and  laborious  duties  required  of  the  Joint 
Committee  of  Friends  or  its  representatives  in  cham- 
pioning the  cause  of  the  Senecas.  The  long  journeys 
to  the  Seneca  reservations,  the  conferences  with  the 
Indians  in  their  homes  or  their  Councils,  the  quest  for 
evidence  and  the  taking  of  affidavits,  the  strenuous 
days  and  weeks  at  Washington  seeking  interviews 
with  those  in  authority, — these  were  items  in  the  cost 
to  the  children  of  Onas  of  this  new  effort  to  protect 
their  Red  Brothers. 

For  a  considerable  time  after  the  ratification  of  the 
treaty  it  seemed  that  nothing  further  could  be  done  to 
prevent  the  expatriation  of  the  Senecas  from  their 
New  York  homes.  Various  expedients  were  discussed 
but  nothing  seemed  feasible.  The  best  legal  opinion 
obtainable  declared  that  no  further  proof  of  fraud 
could  avail  since  the  treaty  had  been  ratified.  Ap- 
parently the  consummation  of  the  treaty  had  vested  in 
the  Ogden  Land  Company  the  right  to  the  land  in 
question  and  they  could  not  be  divested  of  their  title 
except  by  their  own  consent. 

One  tribunal  however  remained  open  to  the  case, 
and  that  was  the  supreme  court  of  public  opinion. 
The  case  of  the  Senecas  had  been  getting  a  hearing  in 
this  court  for  some  time.  Friends  and  others  had  pub- 
lished various  pamphlets  stating  the  case  and  the  evi- 
dence of  bribery  and  fraud  was  freely  aired  in  the 
public  press.  As  a  result  a  storm  of  protest  began  to 
go  up  from  many  influential  sources  and  the  defense 
offered  by  the  Ogden  Land  Company  and  its  friends 
availed  little  to  quiet  the  storm. 

By  the  treaty  the  Indians  were  given  five  years  in 
which  to  remove  from  their  lands  and  long  before 


FURTHER   WORK   IN    THE   EAST.  123 

those  years  had  run  the  Ogden  Land  Company  was 
ready  to  make  concessions  in  order  to  rehabiUtate  itself 
in  the  eyes  of  the  pubHc. 

As  a  consequence  of  this  situation  a  conference  was 
held  early  in  1842  between  the  Secretary  of  War, — 
who  at  that  period  had  charge  of  Indian  affairs, — the 
Agents  of  the  Ogden  Land  Company,  and  a  delega- 
tion of  Friends  on  behalf  of  the  four  Yearly  Meetings 
of  Genessee,  New  York,  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore. 

The  result  of  this  conference  was  that  the  Ogden 
Land  Company  agreed  to  a  supplemental  treaty.  Ac- 
cording to  this  treaty  the  Company  was  to  retain  its 
title  to  the  Tonawanda  and  Buffalo  reservations  while 
the  Indians  were  to  receive  back  their  title  to  the 
reservations  at  Cattaraugus  and  Allegheny.  This  com- 
promise offer  was  duly  laid  before  the  Indians  by 
Friends  and  was  gladly  accepted  as  the  basis  for  the 
settlement  of  the  unfortunate  and  disgraceful  trans- 
action.^^ 

Largely  as  a  result  of  the  difficulties  experienced  by 
the  Indians  during  these  years  and  their  consequent 
distrust  of  their  Chiefs,  the  Senecas  in  1845  took  from 
their  chiefs  the  power  of  alienating  tribal  lands  and 
in  1848  completed  this  political  reform  by  establishing 
a  thoroughgoing  republican  form  of  government. 


21 


20  The  Senecas  soon  concentrated  their  population  on  the  two 
reservations  thus  secured  to  them,  save  that  the  Tonawandas 
refused  to  leave  their  reservation  and  a  few  years  later  (1857) 
purchased  the  title  to  it  from  the  Ogden  Land  Company. 

21  This  account  from  the  beginning  of  the  land  trouble  in  1838 
is  taken  largely  from  the  following  publications :  Proceedings  of 
the  Joint  Committee.  Bait.,  1847.  Further  Proceedings  of  the 
Joint  Comni.  Bait.,  1850.  The  Case  of  the  Seneca  Indians. 
Phila.,  1840.  Appeal  to  the  Christian  Community.  N.  Y.,  1841. 
Further  Illustration  of  the  Case  of  the  Seneca  Indians.  Bait., 
1841. 


124  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

In  all  of  these  changes  the  Indians  freely  sought 
and  freely  received  the  help  of  Friends  although  the 
latter  were  always  careful  not  to  take  a  partisan  atti- 
tude in  political  agitations  unless  it  was  a  clear  case 
of  right  and  wrong. 

The  fickleness  of  the  Indians  in  their  decisions  made 
the  task  of  Friends  much  more  serious.  A  simple 
minded  people  untrained  in  grappling  with  complex 
problems,  yet  withal  full  of  suspicion  because  of  the 
fraud  and  deceit  so  often  practised  upon  them,  the 
Indians  would  suddenly  become  agitated  and  almost 
panic  stricken.  Perhaps  they  would  surmise  they  had 
been  tricked  into  making  some  recent  decision.  Or 
perhaps  they  would  be  fearful  that  some  treaty  or 
agreement  had  not  been  made  firm  or  binding  enough, 
and  they  would  want  further  guarantees  of  its  ful- 
filment. The  pathos  of  their  unsettled  state  of  mind 
caused  by  the  sore  experience  of  generations  of  their 
people  will  not  escape  the  reader, — and  it  did  not 
escape  Friends  of  that  day. 

After  the  two  reservations  of  Allegheny  and  Catta- 
raugus had  been  secured  to  the  Senecas  in  1S42  the 
Indians  seemed  to  have  settled  in  the  negative  the 
question  of  going  west.  Yet  the  agitation  of  a  few 
discontented  "  emigrationists  "  did  not  cease  and  finally 
a  small  party  went  west  in  1846.  These  soon  found 
themselves  in  want  and  they  appealed  to  their  tribes- 
men in  New  York  who  in  turn  appealed  as  ever  to 
Friends :  "  We  see  no  other  resource  but  to  look  again 
to  those  kind  hearted  friends,  who  have  done  so  much 
already  to  relieve  us  in  our  distress,"  wrote  the  Catta- 
raugus Senecas  to  Philip  E.  Thomas,^^  of  Baltimore, 

22  Philip    E.    Thomas    was    for    many    years    (1803-1861)    an 


PHILIP    E.  THOMAS 


A     LEADER     IN     THE     INDIAN     WORK    OF     LIBERAL    FRIENDS.     CALLED    BY 
THE    INDIANS   "tHE   BENEVOLENT." 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  126 

in  1847.  "  Our  obligations  are  already  very  great,  and 
we  cherish  deep  feelings  of  gratitude  for  past  favors. 
We  would  not  willingly  burden  your  kindness  now, 
were  it  not  for  the  peculiarly  difficult  and  perplexing 
condition  of  things  just  at  the  present  time.  But  we 
feel  that  humanity  towards  our  own  people,  demands 
of  us  to  make  this  application  in  their  behalf."^^  To 
such  appeals  Friends  never  turned  a  deaf  ear,  and  the 
above  instance  is  cited  merely  as  an  example  of  many 
similar  ones  that  cannot  be  included  in  this  brief 
sketch. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  decade  (i 839-1 849)  of  the 
active  service  of  Liberal  Friends  for  the  Senecas  a 
great  desire  was  felt  especially  by  women  Friends  that 
some  more  definite  service  might  be  done  for  the  In- 
dian women. 

The  Indians  had  been  urged  many  times  to  with- 
draw their  women  from  the  fields  for  the  domestic 
duties  of  the  household.  A  woman  Friend,  a  member 
of  the  Committee,  spoke  as  follows  at  a  Council  with 
the  Indians  in  1846:  "To  mothers,  properly  belongs 
the  care  and  management  of  the  education  of  their 
children.  ...  It  is  in  early  infancy  that  lasting  im- 
pressions are  made  upon  children,  and  we  cannot  begin 

active  member  and  the  Clerk  of  the  Indian  Committee  of  Balti- 
more Y.  M.  (Liberal  after  1828)  and  was  a  member  of  the  Joint 
Comm.  of  the  four  Yearly  Meetings.  He  was  highly  respected 
and  greatly  beloved  by  the  Senecas.  In  1845  they  made  him  an 
adopted  (or  honorary)  member  of  their  nation,  giving  him  the 
name  Sagaoh  (or  Sagonan),  "The  Benevolent."  In  1848  when 
the  Senecas  changed  to  a  republican  form  of  government  they 
changed  the  name  of  Philip  E.  Thomas  to  Hai-wa-noh,  "  Am- 
bassador." The  significance  of  this  was  that  he  was  to  be  their 
special  representative  in  their  communications  with  the  govern- 
ment at  Washington. 

2^  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comm,  (1847),  184. 


126  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

too  early  to  instil  into  their  young  and  tender  minds, 
the  principles  of  virtue.  .  .  .  Thus  as  they  advance  in 
age,  they  will  become  a  blessing  to  their  parents,  and 
useful  to  the  community." 

In  the  same  Council  an  Indian  woman,  Gua-na-ea 
spoke  as  follows :  "  I  am  one  of  the  females  appointed 
to  come  here  and  listen  to  what  our  friends  might  have 
to  say.  This  is  the  first  time  any  opportunity  has  been 
offered  for  one  of  my  sex  to  be  heard  in  any  of  the 
deliberations  of  our  Nation.  We  feel  thankful  for  this 
favor,  and  congratulate  ourselves  that  we  have  been 
permitted  to  meet  our  female  friends  here  in  Council, 
and  trust,  a  new  and  better  prospect  is  about  opening 
before  us.  I  am  instructed  by  the  women  now  pres- 
ent to  say,  that  we  fully  approve  the  propositions  that 
have  been  made  in  reference  to  the  education  of  our 
children,  and  that  it  is  our  earnest  desire  they  may  be 
instructed  in  the  manner  represented.  We  will  do  all 
in  our  power  to  cooperate  in  and  promote  so  good  a 
work."2* 

As  a  result  of  the  deliberations  of  this  Council  a 
Female  Manual  Labor  School  was  opened.  The  opera- 
tions of  this  School  may  be  judged  by  the  following 
description  given  by  the  Joint  Committee :  "  This 
school  was  held  in  the  dwelling  erected  for  the  use  of 
Friends,  at  Cattaraugus.  The  average  number  of 
pupils  was  about  twenty-eight,  generally  under  twenty 
years  of  age.  They  were  boarded  in  the  family  at  the 
expense  of  the  Committee,  and  were  taught  to  card 
and  spin  wool,  knit  stockings,  cut  out  and  make  gar- 
ments, etc.  A  part  of  their  number  was  admitted  daily 
into  the  family  of  the  Superintendent,  where  they  were 

2i  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comni.  (1847),  1 71-172. 


FURTHER   WORK   IN    THE   EAST.  127 

taught  to  wash  and  iron  clothes,  etc.,  make  bread,  do 
plain  cooking,  and  every  other  branch  of  good  house- 
wifery, pertaining  to  a  country  life.  Into  this  depart- 
ment all  were  admitted  by  turns,  generally  four  at  a 
time,  and  continued  until  the  necessary  proficiency  was 
attained.  As  such  left  the  school  others  took  their 
places,  by  which  arrangement  a  large  number  of  young 
women  became  qualified  to  take  charge  of  families, 
and  extend  to  succeeding  generations  the  comforts 
and  blessings  of  domestic  life."^^ 

In  contrast  with  the  civilized  life  and  pursuits  being 
taught  to  the  Cattaraugus  Senecas  there  stood  out  in 
the  minds  of  the  Committee  the  situation  of  the  same 
Indians  a  short  decade  before :  "  In  the  years  1839, 
1840,  during  the  contest  about  their  lands,  the  Indian 
men  were  seen  in  groups  round  the  Council  House, 
some  in  the  old  Indian  costume, — their  blankets  girded 
round  them, — the  tomahawk  and  scalping  knife  hang- 
ing at  their  belt, — their  faces  painted  in  glaring  colors, 
— ^brilliant  feathers  in  their  head  dress, — ear  rings 
dangling  in  their  ears,  and  broad  silver  bracelets  on 
their  arms ;  whilst  a  few  others,  principally  young  men, 
were  dressed  in  fine  broad  cloth,  made  up  in  the  Euro- 
pean fashion :  the  whole  presenting  a  motley  group, 
and  giving  ocular  evidence  of  the  tenacity  with  which 
an  Indian  clings  to  the  customs  and  habits  of  his  an- 
cestors, and  to  the  ease  and  indolence  of  savage  life." 

"At  this  period  the  women  appeared  uniformly  in 
their  old  dress.  A  female  was  seldom  or  never  seen 
without  her  blanket.  If  they  wore  anything  on  the 
head,  it  was  a  fur  hat,  such  as  are  worn  by  the  men, 
and  generally  having  a  broad  band  round  the  crown, 

25  Further  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comm.  (1850),  43. 


128  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

made  of  silver  or  some  ornamental  work.  They  gen- 
erally wore  leggings,  richly  ornamented  with  bead 
work,  or  coloured  porcupine  quills."  ...  "A  very 
large  portion  of  the  Indians  lived  in  wigwams,  or 
poor  log  huts, — covered  with  bark,  boards,  or  other 
materials,  hardly  sufficient  to  shield  them  from  the 
weather.  Many  of  them  had  earth  floors,  on  which 
they  slept  in  buffalo  skins  or  blankets.  They  set  no 
table, — had  no  regular  meals, — used  no  plates,  nor 
knives  and  forks.  An  iron  pot  was  generally  found 
placed  over  a  fire,  into  which  they  put  beans  and  hom- 
iny, and  a  piece  of  some  kind  of  meat, — either  pork 
or  venison.  When  any  one  of  the  family  was  hungry, 
he  helped  himself  to  what  he  wanted,  putting  it  in  a 
small  wooden  vessel,  and  feeding  himself  with  a 
wooden  or  iron  spoon.  The  interior  of  their  dwellings 
generally  presented  to  the  eye  a  spectacle  by  no  means 
calculated  to  warm  the  imagination  in  favour  of  In- 
dian life.  The  truth  is,  that  savage  custom  had  driven 
woman  from  her  proper  sphere,  and  domestic  happi- 
ness could  not  enter  the  dwelling  in  her  absence."^^ 

2^  Further  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comm.  (1850),  41-43. — Some 
idea  of  the  progress  of  the  Senecas  may  be  had  by  comparing 
the  above  description  with  the  following,  taken  from  the  report 
of  a  joint  delegation  of  Baltimore  and  New  York  Friends  who 
visited  the  Allegheny  and  Cattaraugus  reservations  in  1862: 
"  The  Indians  appear  to  have  entirely  discarded  the  use  of  the 
blanket  as  an  article  of  dress,  and  adopted  the  dress  of  the 
Whites.  The  Delegation  saw  no  blankets  worn,  except  as  shawls, 
thrown  over  their  other  dresses.  In  a  ride  of  some  six  miles  in 
one  direction,  on  the  Cattaraugus  Reservation,  there  were  well 
improved  farms  on  both  sides  of  the  road,  throughout  the  whole 
distance,  with  good  houses,  barns  and  other  out-buildings,  and 
in  many  instances  well  cultivated  gardens,  and  yards  planted  with 
flowers,  ornamental  trees  and  shrubbery.  There  were  greater 
and  more  wide-spread  evidences  of  progress  in  agriculture,  and 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  129 

In  leading  the  Indians  away  from  their  old  customs 
and  into  the  modes  of  civilized  life  it  is  important  to 
notice  that  liberal  Friends  did  not  emphasize  any  re- 
ligious teaching.  Their  ideas  in  this  respect  were  well 
expressed  in  an  address  to  the  Indians  early  in  1849: 
"With  your  religious  concerns  we  have  studiously 
avoided  to  interfere,  not  because  we  have  deemed  Re- 
ligion an  unimportant  subject,  but  because  we  have  not 
been  called  upon  by  our  position  or  sent  among  you  to 
teach  it, — and  because  we  most  assuredly  believe,  that 
if  you  faithfully  conform  to  the  Will  of  God,  so  far 
as  he  is  pleased  to  make  it  known  to  you,  it  will  place 
you  in  the  best  state  for  the  attainment  of  Religious 
knowledge.  It  will  teach  you  to  be  practical  Chris- 
tians;— it  will  make  you  honest,  merciful,  benevolent, 
holy,  humble, — in  a  word,  it  will  make  you  pure  in 
heart,  and  thus  prepare  you  for  the  society  of  just  men 
made  perfect  in  the  kingdom  of  Heaven.  It  is  not  the 
extent  of  our  theological  instruction,  but  our  fidelity  in 
the  performance  of  manifest  duty,  that  is  the  measure 
of  our  acceptance  in  the  Divine  Sight."^^ 

In  1848  it  was  coming  to  be  more  and  more  the 
opinion  of  the  Joint  Committee  that  Friends  should 
soon  withdraw  from  the  work  at  Cattaraugus  and 
leave  the  Indians  to  work  out  in  practice  the  things 
they  had  learned  in  the  years  during  which  Friends 
labored  among  them.  Consequently,  early  in  1848, 
Joseph  S.  Walton  and  family  went  to  Cattaraugus  to 
take  charge  of  the  Friends'  establishment  there.     His 

in  civilization  with  its  healthful  attendants,  morality,  industry 
and  taste  than  we  had  been  at  all  prepared  to  expect." — Report 
of  Indian  Committee  in  Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting  (Liberal) 
printed  Minutes  (1862),  9, 

27  Further  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comm,  (1850),  57-58. 


130  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

especial  aim  was  to  continue  the  work  of  the  Female 
Manual  Labor  School  and  put  the  farm  in  proper 
order  to  hand  over  to  the  Indians  when  Friends  should 
withdraw.  These  objects  having  been  sufficiently  ac- 
complished in  the  year  1849  the  farm  lease  was  re- 
turned to  the  Indians  and  the  active  work  of  Liberal 
Friends  for  the  Seneca  Nation  came  to  a  close.^^ 

The  genuine  sorrow  of  the  Indians  at  the  with- 
drawal of  Friends  from  active  service  among  them 
was  given  expression  in  an  official  letter  addressed  to 
the  Joint  Committee  of  the  four  Yearly  Meetings  of 
Genessee,  New  York,  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore  by 
a  Committee  of  the  Council  of  the  Seneca  Nation : 

"  Brothers, — 

"  It  is  with  much  pain  and  sorrow  we  learn  that  you  are 
to  close  your  labors  among  us.  When  we  turn  our  faces 
backward,  and  look  over  the  histories  of  the  past,  we  find 
that  more  than  fifty  winters  have  gone  by,  since  the 
Iroquois,  or  *  The  Six  Nations  of  Indians,'  first  selected 
the  Ho-di-wi-yus-doh  [Society  of  Friends]  as  their  friends 
upon  whom  they  could  repose  confidence,  without  fear  of 
being  betrayed." 

After  enumerating  the  specific  charities  of  Friends 
for  them  they  continued : 

"  Brothers, — 

"  We  have,  as  associates,  passed  through  many  dangers, 
and  severe  trials  and  hardships. — In  all  these  you  have 
ever  stood  by  us  and  been  our  support, — have  counseled 
us   in   our   troubles, — consoled  us   in   our  misfortunes, — 

28  Friends,  however,  especially  those  of  Bait,  and  New  York 
Yearly  Meetings,  remained  in  friendly  touch  with  the  Cattaraugus 
Indians  for  more  than  a  decade  after  1849  assisting  them  occa- 
sionally with  advice  and  influence  or,  as  in  the  case  of  a  small- 
pox epidemic  of  1862,  with  financial  aid. 


FURTHER   WORK   IN   THE   EAST.  131 

Strengthened  us  when  feeble,  and  often  relieved  our  neces- 
sities:— all — all  of  these  kind  offices  have  endeared  you  to 
us. — To  part,  are  words  too  severe  for  our  ears." 

"  Brothers, — 

"We  hope  that  you  may  teach  your  children  to  love 
and  pity  the  red  man,  s-o  that  when  the  Master  of  Life 
and  Light  shall  call  you  hence,  your  red  brothers  may  still 
have  friends  like  you,  and  the  good  understanding  now 
existing  between  us,  be  forever  perpetuated  and  cherished 
between  your  posterity  and  ours."29 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL    NOTE. 

New  England  Yearly  Meeting,  Orthodox.  The  chief 
source  materials  for  the  Indian  work  of  New  England 
Yearly  Meeting  are  listed  in  note  8,  p.  14,  above. 

See  also  Conduct  of  Friends  (1844),  pp.  211-217,  for 
brief  secondary  account,  with  quotations  from  sources'. 
Listed  in  Bibliographical  Note  at  end  of  Chapter  IV. 

New  York  Yearly  Meeting,  Orthodox.  The  principal 
sources  are  the  manuscript  Minutes  of  New  York  Yearly 
Meeting  and  of  the  Indian  Committee  of  the  same  Yearly 
Meeting. 

See  also  Conduct  of  Friends  (as  above),  pp.  155-210. 

Liberal  Friends.  The  manuscript  materials  consist 
chiefly  of  Yearly  Meeting  Minutes,  and  Minutes  and  other 
records  of  the  Indian  Committees. 

The  principal  printed  sources  are  the  printed  Minutes 
or  Extracts  of  the  various  Yearly  Meetings  and  the  works 
cited  in  note  21,  p.  123,  above. 

For  location  of  manuscript  and  printed  sources  see  Gen- 
eral Note  on  Bibliography  at  end  of  volume. 

29  Further  Proceedings  of  Joint  Comm.  (1850),  60-65.  I* 
should  be  added  that  as  a  memorial  to  Friends  the  Indians  con- 
verted the  school-house  and  farm  so  long  occupied  by  Friends 
into  an  orphan  asylum  for  Indian  children. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

WORK  ESTABLISHED  IN  THE  WEST. 

The  earliest  missionary  effort  undertaken  by  Friends 
for  the  western  Indians  was  the  result  of  an  interest 
awakened  in  Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting  in  1795.  The 
first  mission  established  was  in  Indiana;  within  a  few 
years  it  was  closed  and  a  similar  mission  was  opened 
in  western  Ohio ;  thence  the  Friendly  apostles  followed 
the  Indians  in  their  move  westward  into  Kansas ; 
there  the  work  was  continued  for  more  than  three 
decades,  until  the  Shawnee  Indians  for  whom  it  was 
established  in  Ohio  and  Kansas  had  removed  to  the 
present  state  of  Oklahoma.^ 

Although  Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting  appointed  an 
Indian  Committee  in  1795  and  entered  with  great  zeal 
into  its  effort  to  aid  the  Indians,  no  settlement  was 
made  among  the  natives  for  almost  ten  years.  During 
that  time  several  journeys  were  made  into  the  Indian 
country  of  Ohio  in  order  to  investigate  the  condition 
and  needs  of  the  various  tribes  then  inhabiting  that 
part  of  the  country.  In  1798  the  Delaware  Indians  on 
the  Muskingum  River  were  given  some  tools  and  imple- 
ments of  husbandry.  In  1799  an  invitation  was  re- 
ceived from  the  famous  Chief  Tarhe  of  the  Wyandot 
tribe  inviting  Friends  to  visit  him  at  Upper  Sandusky 
and  be  present  at  a  Grand  Council  Fire.    The  Friends 

1  The  later  mission  work  of  Friends  in  Oklahoma  was  not 
directly  an  outgrowth  of  the  above  mentioned  work.  See  Chap- 
ters VIII  and  IX. 

132 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  133 

sent  out  by  the  Committee  in  response  to  this  invita- 
tion arrived  too  early  for  the  Grand  Council  and,  not 
finding  it  convenient  to  remain  for  any  length  of  time, 
had  to  content  themselves  with  a  conference  with 
Tarhe  and  other  chiefs  who  could  be  readily  called  to- 
gether from  the  vicinity.  A  most  friendly  intercourse 
was  held  at  this  conference  but  the  Friends  returned 
to  Baltimore  greatly  depressed  'by  the  terrible  havoc 
which  they  saw  was  being  wrought  among  the  Indians 
by  the  use  of  spirituous  liquors.  Unless  this  evil  could 
be  checked  it  was  felt  that  little  progress  would  be 
made  in  any  effort  to  lead  the  Indians  into  the  higher 
planes  of  civilized  life. 

In  1802  several  chiefs  of  the  Miami  and  Pota- 
watomi  tribes  were  passing  through  Baltimore  and 
members  of  the  Committee  had  an  opportunity  to 
meet  with  them  and  point  out  clearly  the  baneful 
effects  of  the  use  of  liquor.  They  found  the  Indians 
not  blind  to  the  situation.  The  famous  Chief,  Little 
Turtle,  of  the  Miamis,  replied  pointedly:  "When  our 
forefathers  first  met  on  this  island,  your  Red  Brethren 
were  very  numerous.  But  since  the  introduction 
amongst  us,  of  what  you  call  spirituous  liquors,  and 
what  we  think  may  justly  be  called  Poison,  our  num- 
bers are  greatly  diminished.  ...  It  is  not  an  evil  of 
our  own  making.  We  have  not  placed  it  amongst  our- 
selves. It  is  an  evil  placed  amongst  us  by  the  white 
people.  We  look  to  them  to  remove  it  out  of  our 
country. "2 

"^Proceedings  of  Bait.  Conim.  (1806),  18-19.  The  first  com- 
mittee of  Bait.  Y.  M.  to  have  charge  of  Indian  matters  consisted 
of  the  following,  appointed  in  1795  :  John  Wilson,  John  M'Kim, 
John  Branen,  Evan  Thomas,  Allan  Farquhar,  John  Love,  Caleb 
Kirk,  Jonathan  Wright   (of  Monallen),  Thos.  Matthews,  Joseph 

10 


134  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Stirred  by  the  pathetic  and  incisive  words  of  Little 
Turtle  and  t>y  the  increasing  gravity  of  the  situation 
Friends  prepared  a  memorial  to  Congress.  This 
memorial  and  the  subject  introduced  by  it  received 
favorable  consideration  and  a  law  was  passed  which 
greatly  reduced  the  evil  in  question.  So  marked  were 
the  results  of  this  legislation  that  the  government  In- 
dian Agent  at  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana,  expressed  the 
opinion  in  1803  "  that  the  suppression  of  spirituous 
liquors  in  that  country,  is  the  most  beneficial  thing 
which  was  ever  done  for  them  [the  Indians]  by  the 
United  States."^ 

The  way  seemed  opened  by  this  beneficent  legisla- 
tion for  a  greater  and  more  permanent  work  among 
the  Indians.  Such  a  work  was  undertaken  in  1804 
near  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana. 

At  the  solicitation  of  two  Indian  Chiefs,  Little 
Turtle  and  Five  Medals,  a  deputation  of  Friends  was 
sent  out  from  Baltimore  consisting  of  George  Ellicott 
and  Gerard  T.  Hopkins.  With  them  went  Philip 
Dennis  who  was  ready  to  remain  for  some  months 
among  the  Indians  and  teach  them  some  of  the  ele- 
ments of  agriculture.  They  reached  the  Indian  coun- 
try in  1804  and  after  a  time  of  most  friendly  inter- 
course and  counsel  it  was  decided,  with  the  hearty 
approbation  of  the  Indians,  that  Philip  Dennis  should 
remain  among  them  for  some  time  as  had  been  planned. 
Thus  was  established  the  first  mission  settlement  of 
Friends  among  the  western  Indians. 

A  plot  of  fertile  land  was  selected  on  the  Wabash 

Bond,   Joseph    Beeson,    John    Butcher,    Benjamin    Walker,    Israel 
Janney,  David  Branen,  Gouldsmith  Chandlee,  Moses  Dillon,  Elias 
Ellicott,  Nathan  Heald,  David  Greane. 
^Proceedings  of  Bait.  Comm,  (1806),  22. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN    THE   WEST.  135 

River  at  a  place  called  Boat-yard  a'bout  thirty-two 
miles  southwest  of  Fort  Wayne  and  there  Philip 
Dennis  gave  to  the  Indians  a  demonstration  of  prac- 
tical and  successful  agriculture.  He  remained  during 
most  of  the  year  and  on  his  return  home  reported  that 
his  relations  with  the  Indians  had  been  most  cordial. 
"  He  raised  about  400  bushels  of  corn,  besides  a  quan- 
tity of  turnips,  potatoes,  cucumbers,  watermelons, 
pumpkins,  beans,  parsnips,  and  other  garden-veg- 
etables; which  he  directed  to  be  divided  amongst  the 
Inidans  on  their  return  from  their  hunting  camps  ;  and 
left  with  the  family  of  Indians  with  whom  he  had  re- 
sided, upon  the  farm  he  had  cultivated,  23  hogs  and 
pigs,  seven  of  which  were  in  good  order  to  kill,  and 
which  he  expected  would  weigh  1,500  lb.  .  .  .  With 
some  assistance,  which  he  obtained  from  Fort  Wayne, 
he  cleared  and  enclosed  under  a  substantial  fence 
twenty  acres  of  ground,  and  built  a  house,  thirty-two 
feet  long  and  seventeen  feet  wide,  a  story  and  a  half 
high,  with  floors  and  partition."  It  required  some 
effort  to  dissuade  the  industrious  young  Indian  women 
from  assuming  the  burden  of  cultivating  the  fields,  but 
Philip  Dennis  finally  persuaded  them  to  study  the  art 
of  spinning  and  knitting  under  the  direction  of  a  white 
woman  at  Fort  Wayne  and  before  he  left  the  Indian 
settlement  he  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  Indian 
women  knitting  the  yarn  of  their  own  spinning.* 

Such  was  the  practical  and  auspicious  beginning  of 
the  work  on  the  Wabash  River  in  Indiana.  The  Eel 
River  and  the  Wea  Indians,  branches  of  the  Miami 

*  Proceedings  of  Bait.  Comm.  (1806),  38-40.  For  the  journey 
to  Indiana  and  the  establishment  of  the  work  on  the  Wabash 
River  see  the  Journal  kept  by  Gerard  T.  Hopkins,  published  in 
the  Maryland  Historical  Magazine,  March,  1909. 


136  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

tribe,  were  chiefly  influenced  by  this  work  but  others 
saw  or  heard  about  the  experiment  and  were  influ- 
enced by  it. 

In  1805,  at  the  request  of  Baltimore  Friends,  the 
government  agent  at  Fort  Wayne  employed  a  man  to 
carry  on  the  work  begun  by  Philip  Dennis  the  year 
before.  After  that  two  young  men  were  sent  out  by 
the  committee  and  they  remained  in  the  work  for  sev- 
eral years. 

The  success  of  the  effort  was  apparent  from  the 
start  and  continued  so  for  about  five  years.  In  1809 
difficulty  was  again  encountered  from  the  sale  of  liquor 
to  the  Indians  but  an  appeal  to  the  government  by  the 
Indians  themselves,  backed  by  the  good  offices  and  in- 
fluence of  Baltimore  Friends,  accomplished  some 
abatement  of  this  evil  for  a  season. 

A  greater  difficulty,  that  could  not  be  thus  con- 
trolled, soon  arose  and  in  a  short  time  brought  the 
work  in  Indiana  to  a  sudden  termination.  This  was 
the  unrest  caused  among  the  Indians  by  the  influence 
of  the  famous  Shawnee  "  Prophet,"  Tenskwatawn, 
and  his  twin  brother  Tecumseh.  These  men  stirred 
the  Indians  with  a  rehgious  fervor  to  oppose  the  white 
man  with  all  his  customs.  The  agitation  led  to  the  dis- 
astrous defeat  of  the  Indians  by  General  William 
Henry  Harrison  at  Tippecanoe,  Indiana,  in  November, 
181 1.  The  Indian  war  then  blended  into  the  war  be- 
tween Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  which 
began  the  following  year. 

As  early  as  1810  the  agitation  of  the  "  Prophet "  had 
begun  to  hinder  the  work  on  the  Wabash  River  and  in 
181 1  the  Baltimore  Committee  reported  that  the  work 
had  been  suspended  for  the  time.    As  the  fortunes  of 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  137 

the  situation  turned  it  was  suspended  for  all  time. 
Early  in  the  War  of  1812  the  establishment  on  the 
Wabash  River  was  destroyed  and  when  Friends  again 
estabHshed  a  work  for  the  western  Indians  a  more 
auspicious  opening  was  found  in  the  state  of  Ohio.^ 

So  ended  the  first  work  in  the  west.  Begun  under 
favorable  conditions,  it  flourished  as  long  as  conditions 
remained  favorable,  and  ended  abruptly  with  the  crisis 
that  could  not  be  foreseen  nor  avoided.  It  was  the 
only  mission  work  of  Friends  ever  destroyed  in  an 
Indian  war. 

The  work  in  Indiana  did  not  turn  the  minds  of 
Friends  from  the  Indians  of  Ohio.  The  Delawares  on 
the  Muskingum  River  who  had  received  tools  and  im- 
plements from  the  Baltimore  Committee  as  early  as 
1798  continued  to  receive  similar  aid  in  1810  and  for 
one  or  two  succeeding  years.  A  young  man  was  also 
employed  for  some  months  to  show  them  how  to  use 
their  tools  and  plant  their  crops. 

In  181  o  also  the  Baltimore  Committee  reported  to 
the  Yearly  Meeting  that  a  request  had  been  received 
from  that  portion  of  the  Shawnee  tribe  residing  at 
Wapakoneta  on  the  Auglaize  River  in  western  Ohio 
that  Friends  should  extend  a  benevolent  interest  to 
them.^  This  invitation  was  accepted  and  a  grist  mill 
was  erected  at  Wapakoneta  the  following  year.  A 
little  later  some  tools  were  supplied  to  a  mixed  settle- 
ment of  Iroquois,  Shawnees,  and  other  Indians  settled 
a  few  miles  southeast  of  Wapakoneta  near  the  present 
Lewistown,  Ohio. 

B  MS.  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm.  (Orth.  Copy),  6-14. 

6  It  should  be  remembered  that  Indian  tribes  were  often  split 
up  into  various  divisions  that  lived  in  widely  separated  localities. 
This  is  notably  true  in  the  history  of  the  Shawnees. 


138  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  help  extended  to  these  Indians  in  western  Ohio 
was  much  interrupted  by  tfie  War  of  1812.  The  mill 
at  Wapakoneta  was  dismantled,  the  Indians  were 
driven  from  their  homes,  and  this  new  work  of 
Friends  came  to  a  stand-still.  Yet  the  way  was  being 
blazed  to  a  greater  activity.  The  door  closed  in  In- 
diana by  the  war  was  being  opened  in  western  Ohio 
even  during  the  same  war. 

In  181 5,  at  the  renewed  soHcitation  of  the  Indians 
and  with  the  approbation  of  the  national  government, 
Friends  prepared  to  enter  the  newly  opened  door  in 
Ohio.  It  was  in  this  year  that  Ohio  Yearly  Meeting 
appointed  its  first  Indian  Committee  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  a  deputation  representing  the  Baltimore 
and  Ohio  Committees  visited  the  Indians  at  Wapa- 
koneta and  Lewistown."^ 

The  Friends  who  made  this  journey  were  received 
most  cordially  by  the  Indians  to  whom  they  gave 
wholesome  advice  as  to  the  necessity  of  abstaining 
from  liquor  and  developing  industrious  and  steady 
habits  in  their  agricultural  pursuits.  The  Indians  re- 
plied in  kindly  and  earnest  words  through  their  Chief 
Black  Hoof  at  Wapakoneta  and  Captain  Lewis  at 
Lewistown.^ 

This  was  the  beginning  of  a  considerable  and  an 
important  work  among  the  Indians  of  these  two  settle- 
ments in  western  Ohio.  The  grist  mill  at  Wapa- 
koneta was  at  once  rebuilt  and  a  saw  mill  was  soon 
added  to  the  equipment  of  the  community.    A  family 

7  Ohio  Yearly  Meeting  was  organized  at  Mt.  Pleasant  in  1813. 
For  the  appointment  of  the  first  Indian  Comm.  see  MS.  Minutes, 
Aug.  23,  1815,  and  following  days. 

^Report  of  the  joint  deputation,  i-i6;  also  MS.  Minutes  of 
Bait.  Comm.  (Orth.  Copy),  20-37. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  139 

of  Friends  was  located  at  each  of  the  two  settlements 
to  superintend  the  work  undertaken  and  to  teach  the 
Indians  by  precept  and  example  the  manners  and 
methods  of  civilized  life,^ 

The  principal  work  was  at  Wapakoneta.  The  open- 
ing there  among  the  Shawnees  seemed  especially  in- 
viting and  as  early  as  1819  plans  were  in  process  for 
the  estabhshmnt  of  a  school  for  the  Indian  children  at 
that  place.  Encouraged  by  a  donation  of  £150  from 
Friends  in  Ireland  the  Committee  of  Ohio  Yearly 
Meeting,  which  by  this  time  had  taken  over  the  active 
management  of  the  work,  proceeded  with  this  plan  and 
in  1822  the  school  was  opened.  The  school  building 
and  a  dwelling  house  for  the  Superintendent  had  been 
erected  on  a  tract  of  two  hundred  and  fourteen  acres 
bought  for  the  purpose  and  adjoining  the  reservation 
of  Wapakoneta. 


10 


9  Among  the  men,  usually  with  their  families,  who  aided  in 
the  work  at  Wapakoneta  and  Lewistown  as  superintendents, 
teachers,  or  otherwise,  during  this  period  (until  1832)  the  fol- 
lowing are  mentioned  in  various  reports :  John  Paxon,  Jacob 
Taylor,  Jesse  Baldwin,  Isaac  Harvey,  Asa  Pound,  Robert  Green, 
Simon  Harvey,  and  Henry  Harvey. — It  was  Isaac  Harvey  who 
saved  an  Indian  woman  at  Wapakoneta  from  probable  execution 
by  the  Indians  on  a  charge  of  witchcraft  and  thus  helped  to 
break  up  the  witchcraft  superstition  among  the  tribes  of  that 
vicinity.  For  an  account  of  this  incident  see  Harvey,  Shawnee 
Indians,  170-182. 

10  MS.  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm.  (Orth.  Copy),  58-59;  Conduct 
of  Friends,  228.  Aside  from  the  above  mentioned  gift  of  Irish 
Friends  was  the  generous  donation  of  English  Friends  (see 
note  16,  p.  118).  This  latter  fund  had  been  invested  in  bank  stock 
in  Baltimore  city  and  the  income  from  it  was  the  main  support 
of  the  work  in  Ohio.  This  fund  was  retained  by  the  larger 
(Liberal)  body  of  Baltimore  after  1828  and  was  the  cause  of 
much  un-Friendly  dispute.  See  MS,  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm. 
(Orth.),  for  the  years  1834  and  1841. — The  total  sum  subscribed 
by  English  Friends  (i 806-1 807)  was  about  $31,500.    Of  this  sum 


140  FRIENDS    AND    THE    INDIANS. 

The  school  was  a  success  as  long  as  conditions  were 
favorable.  The  Indian  children  showed  good  ability 
in  mastering  the  elements  of  learning  and  their  parents, 
in  some  cases  though  not  in  all,  took  a  lively  interest 
in  their  progress.  The  children,  aside  from  their  reg- 
ular studies,  learned  to  turn  their  hands  to  useful 
labor,  the  boys  working  on  the  farm  and  the  girls 
learning  to  spin  and  perform  other  domestic  tasks. 
There  seems  to  have  been  an  average  of  from  ten  to 
fifteen  children  in  attendance  most  of  the  time. 

The  unfavorable  condition  that  militated  against  the 
school,  causing  it  to  be  suspended  several  times  for 
short  periods,  was  the  agitation  among  the  Indians 
over  the  subject  of  their  removal  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi River.^^  This  agitation  began  to  stir  the  In- 
dians at  Wapakoneta  as  early  as  1820  and  it  w^as  con- 
tinued at  intervals  until  the  last  of  the  Indians  at  that 
.place  began  their  journey  westward  in  the  fall  of  1832. 
During  this  period  of  more  than  a  decade  the  Indians 
were  thrown  into  an  excited  state  of  mind  at  intervals 
and  great  discord  often  arose  among  them  on  account 
of  their  differences  of  opinion  on  the  advisability  of 
changing  their  place  of  residence.^^ 

The  removal  was  inevitable.  The  government  had 
adopted  the  plan  of  Indian  consolidation  as  a  settled 

$6000  was  apportioned  to  New  York  Friends  for  their  Indian 
work  and  the  balance,  about  $25,500,  seems  to  have  been  divided 
equally  between  Philadelphia  and  Baltimore  Yearly  Meetings.  It 
would  appear  that  when  the  separation  occurred  in  1828  Liberal 
Friends  retained  the  New  York  and  Baltimore  funds,  and  Ortho- 
dox Friends  the  Philadelphia  fund. 

11  See  above,  p.  5. 

12  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes^  for  the  years  1821  to  1833; 
Indiana  Y.  M.  MS.  Indian  book,  20—70,  passim;  Harvey,  Shawnee 
Indians,  185-233;  Conduct  of  Friends,  228—234. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  141 

policy  and  thus  the  Friends  of  Baltimore,  Ohio,  and 
Indiana  saw  their  work  for  the  Shawnees  in  Ohio 
gradually  drawing  to  a  close/^  In  1825  Captain  Lewis 
removed  with  a  large  num'ber  of  the  Lewistown  In- 
dians to  a  tract  granted  to  them  in  Kansas  and  from 
that  time  onward  it  was  evident  that  the  westward 
movement  of  the  Indians  was  sure  to  take  place.  The 
subject  continued  to  be  agitated  at  intervals  and  finally 
in  1 83 1  the  Shawnees  entered  into  a  treaty  for  the  sale 
of  their  lands  at  Wapakoneta.  During  the  next  two 
years  the  remaining  Indians  with  whom  Friends  had 
labored  at  Wapakoneta  and  vicinity  took  their  journey 
toward  a  new  and  unknown  home  beyond  the  Father 
of  Waters.^* 

The  Friend  in  charge  at  Wapakoneta  has  told  how 
all  the  Indians  stopped  to  say  farewell  as  they  passed 
the  mission  home  at  the  beginning  of  their  long  jour- 
ney. Even  these  stolid  children  of  the  forest  wept 
bitterly  as  they  took  leave  of  their  long  time  friends, 
the  Quakers.  "  We  have  been  brothers  together  with 
you  the  Quakers  for  a  long  time,"  said  some  of  the 
Chiefs  before  their  departure.     "  You  took  us  by  the 

13  Indiana  Y.  M.  was  organized  in  182 1  and  at  once  entered 
into  active  co-operation  with  Ohio  and  Baltimore  Yearly  Meet- 
ings in  their  Indian  work.  The  following  were  the  members  of 
the  first  "  Active  Committee "  on  Indian  concerns  of  Indiana 
Y.  M. :  Isaac  Harvey,  Aaron  Brown,  Jno.  Wright,  Caleb  Harvey, 
Robert  Furnas,  William  Stanton,  Caleb  Wickersham,  Thomas 
Frazier,  Henry  Pickeral,  William  Hadley,  Patience  Whitacre, 
Jane  Smith,  Agatha  Harvey. — Indiana  Y.  M.  MS.  Indian  book, 

p.  3. 

1*  The  aid  extended  to  the  Indians  by  Henry  Harvey,  the 
Friend  in  charge  at  Wapakoneta,  in  protecting  them  from  fraud 
in  the  treaty  of  sale  for  their  Ohio  lands,  and  in  securing  food 
for  them  in  time  of  need,  is  told  in  Harvey,  Shawnee  Indians, 
190—229. 


142  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

hand  and  you  held  us  fast.  We  have  held  you  fast 
too.  And  although  we  are  going  far  away  from  you, 
we  do  not  want  you  to  forsake  us.  .  .  .  Through  all 
we  have  found  that  by  holding  to  the  Friends  we  have 
done  best,  so  we  hope  always  to  be  in  your  hands." 
These  poor  wanderers  were  soon  to  discover  that  how- 
ever far  the  avarice  of  the  white  man  or  the  exigencies 
of  advancing  civilization  might  drive  them,  the  hands 
of  the  Quakers  would  still  reach  out  to  them  and  con- 
tinue to  "  hold  them  f ast."^^ 

Steps  were  soon  taken  that  led  to  a  renewal  of  the 
missionary  work  of  Friends  among  the  Shawnees  in 
their  new  home.  In  1833,  lesS'  than  a  year  after  the 
removal  of  the  Indians  from  Wapakoneta,  a  deputa- 
tion of  three  Friends^^  was  sent  out  by  the  Indian 
Committee  of  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  to  visit  the  In- 
dians on  their  new  reservation  in  Kansas.  The  dele- 
gation went  out  with  the  approval  of  Ohio  and  Balti- 
more Friends  and  with  a  cordial  letter  of  introduction 
written  by  Lewis  Cass,  Secreary  of  War,  and  directed 
to  the  Indian  Agents  and  other  officers  of  the  govern- 
ment with  whom  the  traveling  Friends  might  come  in 
contact. 

These  Friends  found  the  Shawnees  located  just  west 
of  the  Missouri  River,  only  a  few  miles  from  the  pres- 
ent Kansas  City.  The  Indians  had  not  been  idle  in 
their  new  home :  "  Since  their  arrival  in  that  country 

IB  Harvey,  Shawnee  Indians,  231  ;  MS.  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm. 
(Orth.  Copy),  118. 

16  The  three  Friends  were  Henry  Harvey,  Simon  Hadley,  and 
Solomon  Hadden.  Henry  Harvey  had  been  in  charge  of  the 
mission  station  at  Wapakoneta  when  the  Indians  migrated  west- 
ward the  year  before. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  143 

last  fall  they  have,  as  well  as  we  are  able  to  judge, 
made  upwards  of  thirty  thousand  rails,  and  laid  most 
of  them  up.  They  have  settled  on  the  timbered  land 
and  have  cleared,  some  two,  some  four  to  six  and  some 
eight  acres,  and  are  engaged  in  planting  corn.  They 
have  planted  considerable  of  potatoes  and  the  like  in 
order  for  subsistence  the  ensuing  year.  They  have 
purchased  some  milch  cows ;  and  some  of  them  have  a 
few  hogs."  Such  is  the  picture  as  seen  by  the  visiting 
Friends  whose  hearts  were  warmed  with  the  belief 
that  the  long  years  of  effort  in  the  mission  at  Wapa- 
koneta  had  done  its  part  in  developing  habits  of  thrift 
and  industry  among  the  Indians, 

Nor  was  there  any  lack  in  the  welcome  extended  by 
the  Indians  to  their  old  friends.  The  chief  who  made 
the  formal  address  of  welcome  recalled  what  Friends 
had  told  the  Indians  before  they  migrated  from  Ohio : 
"  Our  brothers  the  Quakers  told  us  that  we  were  going 
far  to  the  west,  but  they  said  that  the  arms  of  our 
brothers  the  Quakers  would  still  be  able  to  reach  and 
assist  us.  .  .  .  This  is  what  our  brothers  told  us  and 
now  it  appears  they  have  not  forgotten  us."^^ 

Encouraged  by  what  they  heard  and  saw  the  three 
Friends  reported  to  the  Committee  of  Indiana  Yearly 
Meeting  that  the  way  seemed  to  be  open  and  the  op- 
portunity great  for  a  further  work  among  their  former 
wards.  The  suggestion  was  passed  on  eastward  to 
Friends  of  Ohio  and  Baltimore  and  received  by  them 
with  cordial  approbation.  It  was  agreed  that  the  three 
Yearly   Meetings   should   cooperate   in   the   work   as 

17  Full  report  of  deputation  in  MS.  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm. 
(Orth.),  141-145  ;  see  also  Harvey,  Shazunee  Indians,  234-236. 


144  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

formerly  but  that  the  active  duties  entailed  should  de- 
volve upon  the  committee  of  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting.^^ 

Plans  were  put  into  operation  promptly.  A  location 
was  selected  for  the  mission  establishment,  suitable 
buildings  were  erected,  superintendents  and  a  teacher 
engaged,  and  in  1837  the  work  of  Friends  for  the 
Shawnees  in  Kansas  was  in  operation.^^ 

When  Friends  first  began  to  work  among  the  Shaw- 
nees in  Ohio  their  principal  effort  was  directed  toward 

18  MS.  Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm.  (Orth.),  160.  The  three  Yearly 
Meetings  that  carried  on  the  work  in  Kansas  were  of  the  Ortho- 
dox branch.  For  the  work  of  Liberal  Friends  after  1828,  see 
above,  p.   118  ff. 

19  The  following  is  a  list  of  those  who  had  a  part  in  the  work 
at  the  mission,  some  for  only  a  very  short  time,  others  for  more 
extended  periods.  The  list  has  been  compiled  from  the  printed 
Minutes  of  Indiana  Y.  M.  and  the  various  names  are  here  given 
only  under  the  date  when  first  mentioned  in  the  Minutes: 

1837,  Moses  Pearson  and  wife;  Mary  H.  Stanton;  Elias 
Newby.  1840,  Henry  and  Ann  Harvey  and  family;  David  Jones. 
1841,  Thomas  and  Hannah  Wells,  teachers.  1842,  Thomas  and 
Esther  French ;  Thomas  and  Mary  Stanley ;  John  Stewart  and 
Mary  Crew.  1844,  John  M.  Macy,  1845,  Zeri  and  Miriam 
Hough;  Thomas  and  Hannah  Wells,  Superintendents.  1846,  Al- 
fred Johnson;  Ann  Stanton;  Eli  Hadley.  1847,  Jesse  and  Eliza- 
beth Harvey;  William  F.  and  Sarah  Harvey;  Richard  Menden- 
hall ;  Thomas  Harvey;  Sarah  Ann  Nixon;  Rachel  P.  Hall.  1849, 
James  Stanton.  1850,  Jonathan  Brown;  Edith  Lewis  and  Matilda 
Smith.  1 85 1,  Wilson  and  Zelinda  Hobbs ;  Edward  Y.  Teas;  and 
Theresa  Arnett.  Cornelius  and  Phebe  Douglass ;  Rebecca  Jenks. 
1852,  William  Horniday ;  Eleanor  Horniday.  1854,  Davis  W. 
Thayer  and  wife;  Elizabeth  M.  Thayer;  Cyrus  Rodgers.  1856, 
Jeremiah  A.  Hadley  and  wife;  Martha  Townsend;  John  Denny 
and  wife.  1857,  Simon  D.  and  Mary  H.  Harvey;  John  Pool; 
Caleb  and  Rebecca  Harvey.  1858,  Mary  J.  Harvey.  1859,  Maria 
Hussey ;  Simon  and  Mary  J.  Hadley.  i860,  James  and  Rachel 
Stanley.  1861,  Lydia  M.  Butler;  Mary  Brock.  1863,  Henry  and 
Anna  M.  Thorndike.  1864,  Frank  Coggeshall.  1865,  Elisha 
Parker  and  wife;  Mary  E.  Hill.  1866,  William  and  Penelope 
Gardner.  1867,  John  and  Achsa  Carter;  Nerena  Carter.  1868, 
Joel  W.  and  Elizabeth  Willis.     1869,  Eli  and  Jemima  Vestal. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  145 

teaching  the  adult  Indians  the  elements  of  practical 
agriculture.  That  stage  had  passed  by  the  time  the 
work  was  begun  in  Kansas  and  the  principal  work  cen- 
tered in  the  school  for  the  Indian  children.^^  This 
work  consisted  of  teaching  them  the  elements  of  a  ht- 
erary  education  and  training  them  outside  of  school 
hours  in  the  practical  duties  of  life.  At  this  time  too, 
as  in  the  later  years  of  the  work  in  Ohio,  more  and 
more  stress  was  laid  upon  teaching  the  Indian  children 
the  doctrines  of  evangelical  Christianity. 

One  of  the  early  reports  shows  the  routine  of  work 
for  the  school  children :  "  The  children  have  been  kept 
at  their  books  five  or  six  hours  in  each  day,  five  days 
in  each  week ;  they  are  allowed  an  hour  or  more  recess 
each  day,  and  the  remainder  of  the  day  they  are  kept 
at  work,  and  bid  fair  to  be  very  helpful.  The  boys 
have  gathered  a  considerable  quantity  of  fodder,  while 
we  were  engaged  at  other  work ;  they  were  helpful  in 
harvest  and  at  many  other  kinds  of  work.  The  girls 
can  all  knit  stockings  except  one  or  two,  who  have  not 
been  long  with  us ;  several  of  them  can  make  their  own 
dresses,  they  are  helpful  in  the  kitchen,  and  seem  in- 
tent to  learn  all  they  can."^^ 

By  means  of  the  help  of  the  Indian  boys  and  other 
help  engaged  for  the  purpose  the  mission  farm  was 
cultivated  to  good  advantage  and  at  times  it  helped 
materially  in  the  support  of  the  work. 

The  Christian  instruction  of  the  Indians  was  made  a 
primary  object.    When  Friends  of  England  subscribed 

20  To-day  another  stage  has  been  reached  at  the  Friends'  mis- 
sions in  Oklahoma.  The  government  looks  after  the  schooling 
of  Indian  children  and  the  missions  confine  themselves  strictly 
to  religious  and  social  work. 

21  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1840,  p.  17. 


146  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

to  the  work  at  its  inception  in  Kansas  they  specified 
that  "their  [the  Indians']  Christian  instruction  is  the 
primary  object  which  the  subscribers  have  in  view." 
The  acting  committees  of  Ohio  and  Indiana  heartily 
concurred  in  this  desire  and  did  their  best  to  carry  it 
out.  The  children  in  the  mission  school  were  taught 
the  principles  of  the  Christian  religion  and  they  com- 
mitted to  memory  suitable  portions  of  Scripture.  Re- 
ligious meetings  after  the  manner  of  Friends  were  held 
regularly  at  the  mission  and  the  Indians  young  and 
old  were  invited  to  attend.  One  of  the  interesting  re- 
sults of  this  religious  effort  was  that  an  Indian  by  the 
name  of  Kiko  (or  Caco)  in  1852  joined  the  Society  of 
Friends,  becoming  a  regular  member  of  Miami 
Monthly  Meeting,  of  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting.^^ 

The  annual  donations  for  the  support  of  the  work 
came  usually  from  Friends  of  Indiana,  Ohio,  and  Bal- 
timore, although  aid  often  came  from  other  sources. 
Friends  of  London,  Philadelphia,  New  York,  New 
England,  Western  and  Iowa  Yearly  Meetings  con- 
tributed generously  at  various  times  during  the  period 
from  1833  to  1871.  Aside  from  the  support  of  the 
mission  work  proper,  supplies  of  food  and  clothing 
were  provided  for  the  Indians  on  several  occasions 
when  they  were  in  need  on  account  of  crop  failures 
or  for  other  reasons.^^ 

22  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1834,  p.  15  ;  same,  1852,  p. 
36;  same,  1862,  p.  38.  Provision  was  made  in  1850  for  Indians 
to  join  Friends,  see  Minutes,  1850,  p.  29. 

23  In  1847  Indiana  Y.  M.  appropriated  $653.49  to  the  work, 
Ohio  Y.  M.  $307,00,  and  Baltimore  $140.00.  This  was  about  the 
usual  proportion  although  Indiana  Y.  M.  gave  as  high  as  $1000 
or  $1200  some  years.  For  gifts  from  other  Yearly  Meetings  see 
Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes  for  1833,  1834,  1838,  1845,  1850, 
1851,    1859,    1864.     For  the  gift  of  Dr.  John  Unthank  see   MS. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  147 

The  interest  and  cooperation  of  New  York  and  New 
England  Yearly  Meetings  is  worthy  of  particular  men- 
tion. It  has  been  stated  already  in  this  narrative  that 
the  work  of  New  York  Friends  for  the  Indians  of  that 
state  was  broken  up  about  1830  by  the  removal  of  the 
natives  westward.^*  These  Friends  were  not  satis- 
fied however  to  lay  aside  all  responsibility  for  the  In- 
dians and  in  1837  ^  P^^^  matured  for  inquiring  into 
the  condition  of  the  Indians  residing  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi River.  In  that  year  a  communication  was  ad- 
dressed to  several  other  American  Yearly  Meetings 
inviting  them  to  cooperate  with  New  York  Friends  in 
securing  information  about  the  needs  of  the  Indians 
in  the  west.  As  most  of  the  Yearly  Meetings  were 
already  carrying  on  extensive  missionary  enterprises 
among  the  Indians  only  New  England  seems  to  have 
entered  heartily  into  the  project.  There  a  committee 
was  appointed  and  the  two  Yearly  Meetings  began  an 
active  correspondence  with  regard  to  plans  for  getting 
information  and  entering  into  united  service  for  the 
Indians. ^^ 

John  D.  Lang  and  Samuel  Taylor,  Jr.,  ministers  of 
New  England  Yearly  Meeting,  offered  to  visit  the 
western  Indians  and  were  appointed  to  that  service 

Minutes  of  Bait.  Comm.  (Orth.),  Dec.  17,  1835;  same,  1832- 
1842,  for  bequest  of  Sarah  Zane  and  efforts  to  collect  it  from 
her  estate. 

24  See  above,  p.   117. 

25  In  planning  for  united  action  by  several  Yearly  Meetings 
the  New  York  Comm.  in  1839  proposed  "that  the  committees  of 
the  several  Yearly  Meetings  adopting  the  measure,  shall  have 
an  agent,  or  agents,  as  their  pecuniary  means  may  admit,  resid- 
ing at  the  central  seat  of  Indian  government." — See  Conduct  of 
Friends,  172.  This  plan  foreshadowed  the  Associated  Executive 
Committee  established  about  three  decades  later. 


148  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

by  the  committees  of  the  two  Yearly  Meetings.  Hav- 
ing secured  the  approbation  of  the  United  States  Com- 
missioner of  Indian  Affairs  and  the  Secretary  of  War 
they  set  out  in  August,  1842,  on  a  journey  which  was 
to  occupy  them  until  about  the  close  of  that  year.  They 
first  visited  the  Winnebago  Indians  in  northeastern  Iowa 
and  then  gradually  worked  southward  to  the  present 
state  of  Oklahoma.  They  visited  the  Winnebagoes, 
Sacs  and  Foxes,  Shawnees,  Kickapoos,  Delawares, 
Kansas,  Potawatomies,  Osages,  Senecas,  Cherokees, 
Creeks,  and  Choctaws,  and  came  somewhat  into  touch 
with  various  other  tribes. 

During  the  journey  the  hearts  of  the  traveling 
Friends  were  occasionally  uplifted  by  incidents  tending 
to  assure  them  that  the  earlier  work  of  Friends  had 
not  been  in  vain.  They  met  a  Stockbridge  woman 
who  as  a  girl  was  educated  in  a  Friends'  school  on 
Long  Island.  Her  ease  and  grace  of  bearing  and  the 
splendid  condition  of  her  family  and  household  affairs 
testified  to  the  benefits  of  her  early  training. 

The  tradition  of  William  Penn's  kindness  to  the  In- 
dians and  of  the  Great  Treaty  at  Shackamaxon  was 
still  alive  among  the  Delaware  Indians.  One  of  the 
principal  men  of  the  Munsees  (a  division  of  the  Dela- 
ware tribe)  spoke  feelingly,  even  tearfully,  of  the  long 
time  kindness  of  Friends  to  the  Indians :  "  Brothers, 
your  fathers,  William  Penn  and  others  of  your  old 
men,  and  our  old  men  the  Munsees,  lived  in  peace  like 
brothers,  and  made  the  treaty  under  the  elm  tree,  and 
the  Quakers  and  the  Munsees  have  always  been 
friends,  and  my  heart  is  glad  you  still  think  about  your 
poor  Indian  brethren,  and  come  and  see  them ;  for  it 


JOHN    D.   LANG 
(1799-1879) 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  149 

makes  poor  Indian's  heart  glad  when  they  see  their 
Quaker  brothers."^^ 

The  visit  to  the  Friends'  mission  among  the  Shaw- 
nees  in  Kansas  was  the  most  important  part  of  the 
journey  as  far  as  direct  and  permanent  results  were 
concerned.  The  traveling  Friends  found  twenty-three 
boys  and  fourteen  girls  in  the  school.  They  seemed  to 
be  well  cared  for  and  well  trained.  They  were  pro- 
ficient in  their  various  lines  of  study  and  could  answer 
readily  the  questions  put  to  them  with  regard  to  the 
Scriptures.  The  Friends  held  councils  with  the  chiefs 
and  head  men  of  the  Shawnees  at  which  the  usual  as- 
surances of  friendship  and  good- will  were  inter- 
changed. 

The  report  of  John  D.  Lang  and  Samuel  Taylor,  Jr., 
to  New  York  and  New  England  Yearly  Meetings  con- 
tained many  practical  suggestions  on  the  Indian  policy 
of  the  United  States  government  and  these  suggestions 
were  embodied  in  a  joint  memorial  forwarded  by  those 
yearly  meetings  to  the  government.^^ 

The  part  of  the  report  that  described  the  work  of 
the  Friends'  mission  among  the  Shawnees  was  also 

26  Conduct  of  Friends,  192,  198.  A  sketch  of  the  life  and 
work  of  John  D.  Lang  with  portrait  is  in  The  American  Friend, 
New  Series,  4  (1916)  :  1017-1018.  The  tradition  of  Penn's  kind- 
ness and  the  Great  Treaty  may  not  have  been  continuous  but 
several  considerations  favor  the  belief  that  it  was :  the  usual 
vitality  of  such  traditions ;  the  fact  that  Friends  had  aided  a 
portion  of  the  Delaware  tribe  located  in  Ohio  in  1798  and  in  the 
early  19th  century  (see  above,  p.  132  ff.),  and  had  labored  among 
other  tribes  in  Ohio  and  Indiana  with  whom  the  Delawares  were 
closely  associated.  This  missionary  activity,  talked  about  among 
the  Indians,  would  help  keep  alive  the  old  tradition  which  must 
have  been  well  known  by  the  older  Indians  at  the  close  of  the 
1 8th  century. 

27  Copy  of  this  memorial  in  Conduct  of  Friends,  209-210.  See 
also  New  England  Yearly  Meetings  MS.  Minutes,  1844. 

11 


150  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

productive  of  results  and  induced  the  two  Yearly 
Meetings  to  give  to  the  mission  substantial  aid  in  a 
financial  way  during  the  succeeding  years. 

The  Shawnee  mission  was  at  the  high  tide  of  its 
prosperity  at  the  time  the  two  Friends  visited  it,  and 
remained  in  a  very  prosperous  condition  for  a  few 
years  following  their  visit. 

During  the  first  two  or  three  years  of  the  school 
there  had  been  only  about  fifteen  pupils  in  attendance 
but  this  number  was  more  than  doubled  by  1842  and 
six  years  later  the  average  attendance  for  the  year 
was  about  forty-two  scholars. 

The  year  1850  is  a  suitable  time  to  see  the  work  of 
the  mission  in  detail  for  soon  after  that  date  the  period 
of  change  and  decline  came  on.  The  Report  for  that 
year  of  the  Committee  on  Indian  Concerns  of  Indiana 
Yearly  Meeting  describes  the  work  of  the  year  as  fol- 
lows: 

"By  the  reports  received  from  our  Superintendent  we 
are  informed  that  56  Indian  youth,  of  both  sexes,  have 
received  literary  and  religious  instruction  in  the  Institu- 
tion the  past  year;  30  of  whom  can  read  the  Scriptures, 
and  seem  more  interested  in  reading  these  writings  than 
of  any  other  book.  Most  of  this  class  can  write  and 
cypher,  and  are  acquainted  with  the  use  of  maps;  20 
read  and  spell  in  easy  lessons,  and  6  are  in  the  alphabet. 
The  school  has  been  composed  of  Shawnees,  except  three, 
most  of  them  orphans,  between  the  ages  of  4  and  18.  The 
larger  boys  have  been  employed  in  splitting  rails  and  other 
work.  There  was  one  beef,  and  7,000  pounds  of  pork, 
salted  last  year  on  the  farm.  Upwards  of  60  acres  in  corn 
and  garden  vegetables  have  been  cultivated.  The  corn 
has  suffered  some  for  the  want  of  rain.  There  is  up- 
wards of  4  tons  of  hay  in  the  mow.    About  30  acres  have 


WORK    ESTABLISHED    IN    THE    WEST.  151 

been  sown  in  clover  and  other  grass  seeds,  and  more  than 
100  fruit  trees  set  out.  40  acres  of  wheat,  and  28  of 
oats  have  been  harvested;  about  600  bushels  of  wheat 
and  oats  threshed  out;  25  acres  of  prairie  sod  broke  up, 
and  60  cleared  of  brush;  550  rods  of  fence  new  and  re- 
set; and  30  acres  s'own  in  wheat  this  fall.  This  season 
there  has  been  about  500  lbs.  of  butter,  and  600  lbs.  of 
cheese  made;  84  lbs.  of  wool  spun;  42  yds.  of  linsey 
woven  for  blankets,  and  32  yds.  of  rag  carpet,  and  a  piece 
of  linsey  is  being  made  for  dresses  this  fall;  upwards  of 
50  pairs  of  socks  and  stockings  have  been  knit;  130  gar- 
ments for  the  girls  made  up,  and  upwards  of  100  for  the 
boys;  50  sheets,  towels,  etc.,  for  house  use;  besides  coats, 
pants  and  vests  taken  in  and  made  for  Indian  and  white 
men." 

Aside  from  the  above  activities  of  school,  farm,  and 
household,  it  was  reported  that  the  Meeting  for  Wor- 
ship and  the  First-day  School  had  been  regularly  kept 
up  and  in  the  latter  the  children  had  been  exercised 
faithfully  in  Scripture  Questions  and  Barclay's  Cate- 
chism.^® 

Such  were  the  activities,  religious  and  secular,  of 
the  Friends'  mission  among  the  Shawnees  of  north- 
eastern Kansas  when  the  work  there  was  at  the  height 
of  its  prosperity. 

The  changes  that  set  in  shortly  after  this  time  were 
varied  and  rapid.  One  of  the  notable  facts  was  that 
the  mission  for  a  time  ceased  to  be  strictly  a  mission 
for  the  Shawnees.  In  the  above  report  for  1850  it 
was  stated  that  all  of  the  scholars  except  three  were 
Shawnees.     Very  soon  this  changed.     In  185 1  there 

28  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1850,  pp.  25-26.  See  reports 
of  mission  Supts.,  Thomas  and  Hannah  Wells,  in  Indiana  Y.  M. 
MS.  Indian  book,  pp.  239-250. 


152  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

were  five  tribes  represented  in  the  school  and  the  next 
year  six.  This  tendency  continued  until  in  1861  the 
report  of  the  school  showed  that  of  the  scholars  in  at- 
tendance eleven  were  Shawnees,  ten  Ottawas,  four 
Senecas,  two  Wyandots,  one  Brotherton,  and  one 
Stockbridge. 

This  tendency  in  itself  would  not  have  been  discour- 
aging but  for  the  fact  that  it  meant  that  Friends  were 
having  to  receive  any  Indian  children  they  could  get 
to  fill  up  the  school.  The  children  were  almost  all 
orphans  sent  from  various  tribes  and  bands  of  Indians 
in  the  vicinity  because  the  boarding  school  was  a  con- 
venient home  in  which  to  locate  orphan  children. 

To  be  sure  there  was  evidence,  even  as  this  period 
of  decline  began,  that  the  work  of  Friends  had  borne 
good  fruit.  The  Committee  in  its  report  of  1855  told 
of  the  good  work  of  a  Friend  who  had  recently  visited 
the  mission  and  the  Indians  in  that  vicinity.  This 
Friend  had  visited  a  number  of  homes  among  the 
Shawnees  and  in  these  homes  had  met  many  Indians 
who  had  been  educated  at  the  Friends*  School.  The 
good  results  were  very  evident  especially  in  the  women. 
The  neatness  of  their  dress,  the  order,  cleanliness  and 
comfortable  appearance  of  their  dwellings,  and  the 
strict  propriety  of  their  deportment  brought  satisfac- 
tion and  encouragement  to  the  heart  of  the  visiting 
Friend.^* 

Yet  a  series  of  untoward  events  and  conditions  mili- 

29  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1855,  p.  43.  A  few  years 
later,  in  1858,  two  English  Friends,  Robert  and  Sarah  Lindsey, 
visited  the  mission;  a  copy  of  Sarah  Lindsey 's  journal  is  in 
Devonshire  House,  London  ;  see  copy  in  Haverford  College  Li- 
brary, vol.  I,  p.  178  ff. ;  copious  excerpts  in  British  Friend:  45 
(1887),  7  ff. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  153 

tated  against  the  school.  In  1854  the  Shawnees  sold  a 
large  part  of  their  land  in  Kansas  to  the  United  States 
and  this  sale  caused  difference  of  opinion  and  unsettle- 
ment  among  the  Indians.  Such  a  situation  always 
hampered  missionary  and  educational  efforts. 

The  following  year  there  was  a  scourge  of  cholera 
that  caused  the  death  of  three  scholars  and  made  nec- 
essary the  suspension  of  the  school  for  a  time. 

There  was  trouble  also  at  this  time  on  account  of 
the  slavery  question.  The  Kansas-Nebraska  Act 
passed  in  1854  opened  Kansas  to  the  test  of  popular 
sovereignty  and  soon  the  battle  was  waged  between 
the  pro-slavery  and  anti-slavery  men.  The  attitude  of 
Friends  on  slavery  was  well  known  and  the  mission, 
situated  near  the  Missouri  line,  was  exposed  to  the  fury 
of  the  extreme  pro-slavery  advocates  who  crossed  over 
from  that  state  to  help  settle  the  Kansas  question. 

A  ghmpse  of  those  days  in  "bleeding  Kansas"  is 
contained  in  the  report  of  the  mission  work  for  1856: 
"  The  school  continued  in  a  prosperous  condition  until 
the  20th  of  the  Eighth  month  last,  when  a  body  of 
armed  men,  eighteen  in  number,  came  to  the  Establish- 
ment, took  all  the  horses  and  saddles  on  the  premises, 
and  the  Superintendent  going  out,  asked  them  to  leave 
him  one  of  the  horses  to  send  to  Westport  (a  village 
about  six  miles  from  the  mission)  to  obtain  a  physician 
for  his  wife  who  was  lying  sick  in  the  house,  when  the 
captain  of  the  band  gave  utterance  to  profane  and 
abusive  language,  and  presenting  his  gun  at  him,  in 
that  threatening  attitude  told  him,  this  was  only  a 
beginning  of  what  he  might  look  for,  if  he  did  not 
leave  the  place. "^^ 

30  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1856,  p.  33. 


154  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  result  of  this  attack  was  that  the  school  was 
again  closed,  the  Superintendent  and  other  helpers 
went  to  their  homes  in  Indiana,  and  the  property  was 
left  in  the  care  of  a  hired  man  and  his  wife.  A  little 
later  William  H.  Coffin,  who  then  resided  in  Kansas, 
went  to  the  mission  to  look  into  the  status  of  affairs. 
He  found  that  no  further  depredations  had  been  com- 
mitted and  consequently  provision  was  made  to  have 
the  crops  and  premises  cared  for  during  the  winter 
preparatory  to  reopening  the  establishment  again  in 
the  spring. 

Early  in  1857  Simon  D.  Harvey  and  his  wife  Mary 
H.  Harvey  with  helpers  went  out  and  reopened  the 
school.  The  attendance  was  fairly  good  for  a  time  but 
soon  began  to  dwindle  again,  so  that  in  1861  the 
average  attendance  was  only  twenty-three,  less  than 
half  of  what  it  had  been  in  1848.  It  should  be  stated 
however  that  while  the  small  attendance  was  in  some 
years  due  to  unfavorable  conditions  among  the  In- 
dians it  was  also  due  to  the  fact  that  the  mission  was 
not  securing  adequate  financial  support  part  of  the 
time. 

In  the  year  1861  a  special  committee  appointed  the 
year  before  to  examine  into  the  situation  made  an 
elaborate  report  to  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  on  the  con- 
dition, needs,  and  prospects  of  the  mission  establish- 
ment. This  committee,  referring  to  the  adult  Indians, 
pointed  out  the  fact  so  often  noted  by  careful  observers 
in  that  day  and  this  that  the  annuities  paid  to  the  In- 
dians by  the  government,  "  instead  of  inciting  them  to 
industry,  economy  and  spirited  improvement,  would 
appear  to  have  had  a  contrary  effect,  by  enabling  them 
to  live  in  indolence,  and  contract  habits  of  vice  and 
drunkenness,  leading  to  degeneracy." 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  155 

The  general  reasons  assigned  for  the  decline  of  the 
school  were  that  district  day  schools  open  to  Indian 
children  had  been  organized  and  that,  however  great 
the  opportunities,  there  was  among  the  Indians  that 
"natural  carelessness  usually  prevailing  in  ignorant 
and  uncivilized  communities  as  to  education  itself." 

Aside  from  these  things  the  committee  pointed  out 
frankly  and  specifically  certain  failings  on  the  part  of 
the  supporters  and  the  management  of  the  mission: 
"  (i)  A  lack  of  sufficient  funds  to  prosecute  the  con- 
cern to  the  best  advantage;  (2)  Overtaxing  those  we 
employ  with  more  services  than  they  are  able  to  per- 
form with  profit;  (3)  Too  frequent  changes  in  Super- 
intendents and  teachers  (for  these  should  be  devoted 
persons  of  much  Christian  endurance  and  patience, 
who  can  remain  in  their  positions  for  years  together)  ; 
(4)  A  want  of  that  Missionary  spirit  and  those  Chris- 
tian gifts  which  are  necessary  to  success,  in  the  Super- 
intendent, Teachers  and  others  employed  in  the  con- 
cern." 

Having  delivered  itself  plainly  of  these  observations 
the  committee  referred  by  way  of  contrast  to  the  mis- 
sion of  another  denomination  in  the  vicinity  (probably 
that  of  the  Methodists)  which,  "  having  not  sufifered 
for  want  of  sufficient  means,  but  which  has  had  one 
persevering  and  devoted  Superintendent  for  24  years, 
has  in  it  more  than  60  students  of  the  tribe  in  which  it 
is  located,  and  is  in  prosperous  and  profitable  prog- 
ress."2i 

The  special  committee  went  on  to  suggest  the  pos- 
sibility of  changing  the  field  of  operations  and  opening 

31  Report  of  special  committee  in  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Min- 
utes, 1 86 1,  pp.  25-30. 


156  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

up  in  a  suitable  location  a  boarding  school  for  Indian 
orphans  irrespective  of  tribe.  It  was  also  suggested, 
since  many  Friends  had  gone  to  reside  in  Kansas,  that 
a  new  Indian  Committee  be  appointed  with  Friends 
resident  in  Kansas  constituting  a  majority  of  its  mem- 
bership. This  new  committee  was  appointed  the  fol- 
lowing year  and  also  a  correspondent  from  each  Quar- 
terly Meeting  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  work  and  co- 
operate with  the  committee. 

Although  the  new  committee  was  instructed  to  carry 
out  the  suggestions  made  by  the  special  committee  in 
1861  if  the  way  opened  properly,  the  proposed  new 
Boarding  School  for  Indian  orphans  was  not  estab- 
lished. 

In  1862  the  mission  school  was  closed  and  the 
teacher  was  allowed  to  return  to  her  home.  An  in- 
ventory was  made  of  all  property  at  the  establishment 
and  Friends  prepared  to  close  up  their  work  among 
the  Shawnees.  But  the  following  year  a  new  turn  of 
affairs  made  possible  the  continuation  of  the  work  for 
a  few  more  years. 

When  the  Shawnee  chiefs  saw  that  Friends  were 
about  to  close  up  their  work  they  became  desirous  that 
a  home  and  school  might  still  be  provided  for  the 
orphan  children  of  the  tribe.  Consequently  they  of- 
fered to  pay  the  expenses  of  such  an  establishment  by 
an  appropriation  from  their  school  fund  which  was 
ample  for  the  purpose.  On  that  basis  a  contract  was 
concluded  according  to  which  Friends  were  to  take  a 
number  of  children  not  to  exceed  fifty  and  receive 
eighty  dollars  per  annum  to  cover  the  expense  of  board, 
clothing,  tuition  and  medical  care  for  each  child.  The 
committee  then  concluded  a  contract  with  James  and 


WORK    ESTABLISHED    IN    THE    WEST.  157 

Rachel  Stanley  to  manage  the  establishment  at  the 
rate  of  seventy-five  dollars  for  each  child.  This 
amount  was  to  cover  board,  clothing  and  tuition,  the 
committee  retaining  five  dollars  for  medical  attendance 
on  the  children  and  incidental  expenses.  On  account 
of  the  rise  of  prices  toward  the  close  of  the  Civil  War 
a  new  contract  had  to  be  arranged  with  the  Shawnee 
chiefs  by  which  they  agreed  to  pay  $31.25  per  child  for 
each  quarter  of  the  school  year.^^ 

Under  this  contract  system  the  school  flourished 
again  and  for  several  years  the  average  attendance  was 
about  forty  scholars.  Finances  were  in  better  shape 
than  ever  before.  The  farm  produced  good  crops  and 
supplied  the  establishment  with  much  that  otherwise 
would  have  had  to  be  purchased  at  high  prices.  In 
the  report  of  1867  there  is  noted  a  gain  of  over  one 
thousand  dollars  in  favor  of  the  establishment  in  one 
year.^^ 

Yet  the  work  for  this  branch  of  the  Shawnee  nation 
was  drawing  rapidly  to  its  close.  For  some  years 
Friends  had  been  trying  to  get  a  title  in  fee  simple  to 
the  land  which  constituted  the  mission  farm  and  which 
had  been  assigned  to  them  for  their  use.  The  effort 
to  get  a  permanent  title  to  this  property  caused  dis- 
satisfaction among  some  of  the  Indians  and  in  1868 
the  chiefs  announced  their  desire  to  terminate  the  con- 
tract under  which  the  school  was  maintained.  The 
school  was  therefore  closed  for  a  time  although  a  few 
of  the  orphan  children  who  remained  were  still  cared 
for  in  the  mission  home.  Early  in  1869  the  school  was 
opened  again  at  the  request  of  the  Indians  on  the  same 

32  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1863,  p.  37;  same,   1865,  p. 

54- 

33  Same,  1867,  p.  34. 


158  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

terms  of  contract  as  before.  Again  however  the  In- 
dians changed  their  minds  and  about  the  first  of  April, 
1869,  the  mission  school  was  finally  closed. 

Even  then  Friends  kept  the  mission  home  open  for 
some  months  for  the  reception  of  any  orphan  children 
that  might  return.  The  end  of  the  work  had  however 
come.  By  the  time  the  committee  reported  in  1870 
nearly  all  the  Shawnees  in  that  part  of  Kansas  had 
removed  southward  to  the  present  state  of  Oklahoma 
and  had  been  incorporated  with  the  Cherokees  with  the 
full  privilege  of  the  schools  and  school  funds  of  the 
latter  nation.  ^ 

By  the  close  of  the  following  year  Friends  had 
closed  up  the  business  affairs  of  the  mission  by  sale  of 
the  buildings  and  personal  property.  The  proceeds 
amounting  to  $7,634.60,  were  ready  to  be  used  for  the 
work  of  the  newly  organized  Associated  Executive 
Committee  on  Indian  Affairs.^* 

So  ended  the  work  for  this  branch  of  the. Shawnees, 
a  work  begun  by  Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting  about  sixty 
years  before  when  the  Indians  were  residing  at  Wapa- 
koneta,  in  western  Ohio.  With  the  growth  of  new 
yearly  meetings  of  Friends  in  the  west  and  with  the 
removal  of  the  Indians  westward  the  active  manage- 
ment of  the  mission  had  passed  naturally  into  the 
hands  first  of  Ohio  and  then  of  Indiana  Yearly  Meet- 
ing. The  prelude  to  this  work  was  the  work  done 
for  a  few  years  near  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana,  for  various 
tribes  of  Indians,  and  the  end  of  the  story  came  when 
this  branch  of  the  Shawnees  removed  from  Kansas 
and  became  incorporated  with  the  Cherokee  nation. 

The  work  had  been  highly  successful  at  times  and 

34  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1871,  pp.  43-44. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  159 

again  had  met  great  discouragement.  So  must  go  the 
story  of  all  similar  efforts  for  a  half  civilized  people, 
of  fast  changing  habitation  and  condition. 

Other  work  was  done  by  Friends  for  the  Indians  of 
the  west  during  this  period.  Efforts  were  made  fre- 
quently by  various  Yearly  Meetings  to  influence  the 
national  government  by  memorials  and  otherwise  to 
safeguard  more  closely  the  material  and  moral  wel- 
fare of  the  Indians.  Moreover,  toward  the  close  of 
the  period  just  covered  other  mission  work  began  to 
be  projected  and  carried  out  in  the  west.  These  things 
however  belong  to  later  divisions  of  this  story.  The 
work  done  in  Indiana,  Ohio,  and  Kansas,  as  described 
in  this  chapter,  covering  the  period  from  1804  to  1869, 
represents  the  beginnings  of  Friends'  missionary  ef- 
forts for  the  Indians  in  the  west. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   NOTE. 

Conduct  of  Friends.    London,  1844  (see  above,  p.  84). 
This  little  volume  gives  much   interesting  informa- 
tion on  the  work  in  the  west  prior  to  1844,  often  giving 
considerable  quotations  from  reports  and  other  source 
material. 

Fletcher,  Alice  C.  Indian  Education  and  Civilization. 
1888.  Pp.  685-686.  A  brief  account  of  the  work  among 
the  Shawnees  prepared  by  Esther  Pugh. 

Friends'  Review.     Philadelphia. 

This  weekly  paper  which  began  publication  in  1847 
contains  many  reports  of  the  Indian  committees  of 
various  Yearly  Meetings,  observations  of  Friends 
traveling  among  the  Indians,  etc.  It  is  the  most  valu- 
able of  the  Friends'  papers  after  1847  for  the  work  in 
the  west. 

Harvey,  Henry.  History  of  the  Shawnee  Indians.  Cin- 
cinnati, 1855. 


160  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  most  valuable  part  of  this  book  is  the  author's 
reminiscences  of  his  work  at  the  Friends'  mission  among 
the  Shawnee  Indians  for  several  years. 
London  Meeting  for  Sufferings,  Publications  of.    12  num- 
bers.   1 838-1 846. 

These  publications  are  listed  in  Smith,  Catalogue,  i : 
737.     (See  above,  p.  87.) 

The  most  important  number  of  the  series  is  Conduct 
of  Friends,  listed  above,  p.  84. 
Yearly  Meetings,  Records  of. 

For  the  location  of  the  records  of  various  yearly 
meetings,  see  General  Note  on  Bibliography  at  end  of 
volume. 

For  the  period  1795-1848  the  MS.  Minutes  of  the 
Committee  on  Indian  Concerns  of  Baltimore  Yearly 
Meeting  (Orthodox)  is  invaluable.  This  book  con- 
tains only  transcripts  and  summaries  of  the  minutes 
from  1796  to  1826  for  which  period  the  original  minute 
book  is  in  the  care  of  Liberal  Friends,  Baltimore. 
After  the  division  of  1828  however  the  Liberal  Friends 
had  no  part  in  the  work  described  in  the  above  chapter. 

Ohio  Yearly  Meeting  was  organized  in  1813  and  be- 
ginning with  1 81 5  the  Yearly  Meeting  Minutes  a.TQ  valu- 
able for  the  reports  of  the  Committee  on  Indian  Con- 
cerns. No  minute  book  of  this  committee  has  been 
found. 

After  1821  the  Minutes  of  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting 
are  valuable  and  printed  copies  are  available  from  the 
beginning.  After  1833  Indiana  Y.  M.  had  almost  full 
charge  of  the  work  (in  Kansas)  and  hence  the  reports 
to  be  found  in  the  Minutes  form  the  most  valuable  ma- 
terial for  study.  There  is  preserved  at  the  Yearly  Meet- 
ing House,  East  Main  St.,  Richmond,  Ind.,  a  somewhat 
fragmentary  manuscript  copy  of  the  Minutes  of  the 
Indian  Committee  and  of  other  matter  connected  with 
the  Indian  work  from  1821  to  about  1850.  It  is  more 
complete  for  the  earlier  years. 


WORK   ESTABLISHED   IN   THE   WEST.  161 

Pamphlets  were  printed  from  time  to  time  summing 
up  the  work  done  for  the  Indians  by  the  various  yearly 
meetings.  These  accounts  have  not  been  used  much  in 
this  study  because  the  original  records  from  which 
they  were  drawn  have  been  available. 

A  list  of  these  printed  accounts  will  be  found  in 
Smith,  Catalogue,  i :  783-785. 

For  the  beginning  of  the  work  by  Baltimore  Friends 
see  especially  A  Brief  Account  of  the  Proceedings  of 
the  Committee  Appointed  by  the  Yearly  Meeting  of 
Friends  Held  in  Baltimore  for  Promoting  the  Improve- 
vent  and  Civilization  of  the  Indian  Natives.  Bait. 
1805;  similarly  Proceedings  of  Bait.  Committee,  Bait. 
1806;  also  A  Quaker  Pilgrimage  (in  the  Maryland  His- 
torical Magazine,  March,  1909),  being  the  Journal  kept 
by  Gerard  T.  Hopkins  on  the  journey  to  the  Indians 
of  Indiana  in  1804;  also  contains  other  miscellaneous 
material  on  the  early  work  of  Baltimore  Friends  for 
the  Indians. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

GRANT'S   PEACE   POLICY. 

The  inauguration  of  the  "  Peace  Policy  "  by  Pres- 
ident U.  S.  Grant  in  1869  was  in  a  sense  a  vindication 
and  culmination  of  the  peace  policy  so  successfully  fol- 
lowed by  William  Penn  and  the  philanthropic  efforts 
so  faithfully  continued  by  the  later  generations  of 
Friends. 

In  the  years  immediately  following  1850  it  became 
very  clear  even  to  many  military  men  that  the  war 
policy  was  not  successful  in  dealing  with  the  Indians. 
The  system  of  removing  the  tribes,  often  by  force,  to 
the  established  reservations,  the  constant  pressure  of 
white  gold-seekers,  traders  and  farmers  upon  the  In- 
dian's hunting  grounds,  and  the  building  of  the  Pacific 
Railroad  (1865-1869)  conspired  to  stir  up  constant 
turmoil  and  frequent  wars  on  the  frontier.  These 
wars  were  costly  not  only  in  lives  but  in  money.  The 
Sioux  war  of  1852-54,  the  Cheyenne  of  1864,  the 
Navajo,  the  second  Sioux  of  1866,  and  the  second 
Cheyenne  of  1867  cost  upwards  of  one  hundred  mil- 
lion dollars.  It  was  estimated  at  the  time  that  in  the 
Cheyenne  War  of  1864  the  cost  was  more  than  a 
miUion  dollars  for  every  Indian  killed. 

Against  this  background  of  pillage,  massacre  and 
waste  there  stood  out  in  clear  relief  the  efforts  of  the 
peace  loving  Friends  for  the  Indians.  The  missionary 
and  philanthropic  efforts  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meet- 

162 


grant's  peace  policy.  163 

ing  (Orthodox)  for  the  Allegheny  Senecas  of  New 
York ;  the  largely  successful  effort  of  the  various  east- 
ern Yearly  Meetings  (Liberal)  to  protect  the  Seneca 
Nation  in  its  landed  rights  and  the  succeeding  philan- 
thropic efforts  for  the  Senecas  at  Cattaraugus;  the 
missionary  efforts  of  the  various-  Yearly  Meetings 
(Orthodox)  among  the  western  Indians,  as  exemplified 
by  the  mission  establishment  among  the  Shawnees  in 
Kansas  and  one  carried  on  among  the  Kaws  of  the 
same  state  by  Western  Yearly  Meeting^  for  several 
years  following  1863 ;  the  frequent  pilgrimages  of  in- 
dividual Friends  among  the  Indians  for  religious  or 
philanthropic  service;  the  proverbial  and  outstanding 
friendly  attitude  of  the  Indians  toward  Friends; — 
all  of  these  things  united  to  emphasize  the  contrast 
between  the  Friendly  method  and  the  war  method  of 
dealing  with  the  natives. 

Moreover,  the  government  officials  were  especially 
familiar  with  the  work  of  Friends.  William  G.  Coffin 
had  ably  managed  the  Southern  Indian  Superintend- 
ency  during  the  administration  of  President  Lincoln. 
In  connection  with  the  land  troubles  of  the  New  York 
Senecas  the  Indian  Office  had  frequently  cooperated 

1  In  the  year  of  its  organization  (1858)  Western  Yearly  Meet- 
ing appointed  a  Committee  on  Indian  Concerns  and  attention  was 
at  once  directed  to  the  needs  of  the  Kaw  Indians  in  Kansas. 
The  school  for  Indian  children  was  maintained  from  1863  to 
1866,  the  expenses  being  paid  by  the  Government  out  of  the 
school  funds  of  the  Kaw  Indians.  The  following  Friends  were 
engaged  at  various  times  as  superintendents  or  teachers  in  the 
school :  Mahlon  and  Rachel  Stubbs,  Martha  A.  Townsend,  John 
Woodard,  Samuel  J.  Spray,  Thomas  H.  Stanley  and  wife.  For 
several  years  before  1863  Thomas  H.  Stanley  and  James  Stan- 
ley, early  settlers  in  Kansas,  had  interested  themselves  in  the 
welfare  of  various  Indian  tribes. — See  Western  Yearly  Meeting 
Minutes,  1 858-1 868. 


164  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

with  Friends  in  their  efforts.  Memorials  were  often 
received  from  various  Yearly  Meetings,  and  these 
were  frequently  presented  by  delegations  of  Friends 
sent  to  Washington  for  the  purpose. 

In  1849  Thomas  Wistar  had  'been  sent  by  the  gov- 
ernment as  a  special  commissioner  to  distribute  $40,000 
among  the  mixed  Menominees  at  Green  Bay,  Wiscon- 
sin. In  i860  he  and  Samuel  Bettle,  Jr.,  had  distributed 
supplies  provided  largely  by  Philadelphia  Friends 
among  some  destitute  Oneida  Indians  near  Green  Bay, 
Wisconsin.  On  two  other  occasions  (1865  and  1866) 
Thomas  Wistar  had  been  a  member  of  special  commis- 
sions sent  out  by  the  government  to  treat  with  various 
tribes  of  western  Indians,  on  the  former  occasion  hav- 
ing another  Philadelphia  Friend,  John  B.  Garrett,  asso- 
ciated with  him.2 

For  several  years  prominent  statesmen  had  been 
suggesting  on  occasion  that  a  milder  and  more  philan- 
thropic attitude  toward  the  Indians  might  succeed 
better  than  a  policy  of  coercion.     On  September  14, 

2  Thomas  Wistar,  2nd,  dedicated  a  large  part  of  his  time  from 
youth  to  old  age  to  the  Indian  work.  His  father,  Thomas  Wis- 
tar, 1st,  had  been  a  prominent  member  of  the  Indian  Committee 
of  Phila.  Y.  M.  (Orth,),  Thomas  Wistar,  2nd,  made  frequent 
journeys  among  the  Indians  of  New  York  and  the  west,  and  was 
often  present  in  Washington,  D.  C,  to  lend  his  influence  when 
Indian  affairs  of  importance  were  pending.  His  emotions  were 
at  times  so  deeply  stirred  by  the  sufferings  of  the  natives  that 
they  came  to  love  him  intensely  and  called  him  "  The-man-with- 
a-tear-in-his-eye."  He  was  an  active  and  efficient  member  of 
the  Associated  Executive  Committee  in  its  early  years.  He  died 
early  in  1876. — The  author  has  gained  much  valuable  information 
from  six  manuscript  volumes  of  his  letters  and  memoirs,  kindly 
loaned  by  his  grandson  Edward  M.  Wistar,  of  Philadelphia,  who 
has  been  Chairman  of  the  Associated  Exec.  Comm.  for  many 
years  and  prominently  connected  with  other  associations  for  the 
help  of  the  Indians. 


grant's  peace  policy.  165 

1867,  the  Weekly  Chronicle  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
made  a  more  definite  suggestion  as  follows :  "  The 
treaties  made  by  Wm.  Penn  were  always  respected  by 
both  parties,  and  the  peaceful  sect  of  which  he  was  a 
distinguished  member  have  been  traditional  friends  of 
the  aborigines,  and  always  kindly  regarded  by  them. 
We  have  often  thought  that  if  the  Society  of  Friends, 
who  so  successfully  colonized  and  civilized  the  Senecas 
in  western  New  York,  and  with  such  judgment  and 
benevolence  managed  their  affairs  with  the  Govern- 
ment, could  be  induced  to  take  charge  of  the  subject 
of  colonizing  the  Indian  territory,  and  instructing  the 
Indians,  they  might  prepare  them  for  the  inevitable 
future."^ 

The  year  1867  had  been  a  troublous  one,  with  mas- 
sacre and  bloodshed  on  the  Indian  frontier.  Even 
General  W.  T.  Sherman  had  despaired  of  subduing 
the  Indians  permanently  by  military  force  and  had  de- 
clared that  fifty  Indians  could  checkmate  three  thou- 
sand soldiers.  He  advised  peaceful  negotiations  and 
as  a  result  the  government  appointed  a  commission 
composed  of  four  army  men  and  four  civilians  to  treat 
with  the  belligerent  tribes.  The  negotiations  were  not 
entirely  successful,  however,  and  the  next  year  (1868) 
there  were  still  more  serious  outbreaks  by  the  Indians 
and  more  extensive  military  efforts  by  the  government 
to  quell  them.* 

In  the  fall  of  1867  there  was  a  Friends'  conference 
on  Indian  concerns  held  in  Baltimore  and  participated 
in  by  the  Yearly  Meetings  (Liberal)  of  Baltimore, 
Philadelphia,  New  York,  Genessee,  Ohio  and  Indiana. 

3  Quoted  in  Friends'  Intelligencer,  24  (1867):  514. 

*  Amer.  Annual  Cyclopedia,  7  (1867)  :  402,  8  (1868)  :  382. 

12 


166  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

At  this  conference  it  was  reported  that  prominent 
statesmen  connected  with  the  government  had  ex- 
pressed the  wish  that  Friends  might  be  intrusted  with 
the  care  and  civiHzation  of  the  Indians  and  Friends 
were  urged  to  be  prepared  for  any  service  that  might 
open  before  them  A  memorial  on  behalf  of  the  In- 
dians was  addressed  to  the  government,  at  the  close 
of  which  Friends  expressed  their  wilHngness  to  enter 
unselfishly  and  without  compensation  upon  any  service 
that  might  redound  to  the  benefit  of  the  Indians.^ 

The  Indian  troubles  of  1867  also  stirred  Friends  of 
Iowa  Yearly  Meeting  (Orthodox)  to  action  and  the 
subject  was  taken  up  by  the  Representative  Meeting 
in  September  of  that  year.  A  Committee  on  Indian 
Concerns  was  appointed  and  the  cooperation  of  other 
Yearly  Meetings  invited.  This  resulted  in  the  forma- 
tion of  a  joint  committee  of  Iowa,  Indiana,  Western, 
and  Ohio  Yearly  Meetings  (Orthodox)  and  elicited 
also  the  active  interest  of  Baltimore,  New  York,  and 
New  England  Yearly  Meetings. 

The  above  agencies  were  very  active  during  1868  on 
behalf  of  the  Indians  and  in  favor  of  a  more  peaceful 
and  philanthropic  Indian  policy.  One  point  urged 
upon  the  government  is  worthy  of  especial  notice.  In 
a  memorial  dated  January  18,  1868,  the  four  western 
Yearly  Meetings  urged,  "that  in  the  appointment  of 
officers  and  agents,  to  have  charge  of  their  (the  In- 
dians) interests,  care  should  be  taken  to  select  men  of 
unquestioned  integrity  and  purity  of  character."^ 

The  ultimate  and  most  effective  result  of  the  effort 

6  Friends'  Intelligencer,  24  (1867)  :  580. 

6  This  memorial  was  signed  by  Enoch  Hoag  for  Iowa  Yearly 
Meeting,  Parvin  Wright  for  Ohio,  Luke  Woodard  for  Indiana, 
and  Robert  W.  Hodson  for  Western. 


grant's  peace  policy.  167 

inaugurated  by  Friends  of  Iowa  was  a  conference 
held  at  Baltimore  in  January,  1869,  with  representa- 
tives present  from  the  Yearly  Meetings  (Orthodox) 
of  Baltimore,  New  York,  New  England,  Ohio,  In- 
diana, Western,  and  Iowa.  After  much  serious  de- 
liberation a  memorial  to  the  government  was  drawn  up 
and  the  conference  went  in  a  body  to  Washington  to 
present  the  memorial  and  confer  with  various  officials 
influential  in  Indian  Affairs. 

On  January  25th  an  audience  was  secured  with  Gen- 
eral U.  S.  Grant,  the  President-elect,  and  before  him 
was  laid  the  great  "  concern  "  of  Friends  for  a  more 
peaceful  and  Christian  policy  toward  the  Indians.'^ 

In  the  meantime  the  Friends  of  Philadelphia  had 
also  been  stirred  by  the  Indian  situation  in  the  west 
and  on  January  26th  a  committee  representing  the 
Meeting  for  Sufferings  was  in  Washington  to  present 
a  memorial  and  visit  various  influential  government 
officials.  They  also  had  an  interview  with  President- 
elect Grant,  and  the  concern  of  Friends  was  earnestly 
and  feelingly  presented  by  Thomas  Wistar.^ 

Both  of  the  above  committees  of  Friends,  visiting 
General  Grant  on  consecutive  days,  were  impressed 
with  his  cordial,  sympathetic  attitude  toward  them, 
and  his  apparently  earnest  desire  to  inaugurate  a  more 
peaceful  and  humane  policy  in  dealing  with  the  In- 
dians. 

The  formal  announcement  of  Grant's  Peace  Policy 

7  For  the  above  account  of  the  efforts  initiated  by  Iowa  Friends 
see  MS.  Minutes  of  Representative  Meeting  of  Iowa  Yearly 
Meeting,  Sept.  3,  5,  and  7,  1867;  Sept.  8,  1868;  Sept.  7,  1869. 
See  also  Friends'  Review,  22  (1869)  :  362,  378,  380,  389,  392,  424, 
440,  456,  552-553- 

8  T.  Wistar,  MS.  Memoirs,  2:  193-194. 


168  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

came  less  than  a  month  later,  when  on  February  15, 
1869,  Ely  Samuel  Parker,  an  Aid  to  General  Grant, 
directed  identical  letters,  as  follows,  to  representatives 
of  the  various  bodies  of  Friends,  Orthodox  and  Lib- 
eral: 

"  Headquarters  Army  of  the  United  States, 
"Washington,  D.  C,  February  15,  1869 
"Sir:  General  Grant,  the  President  elect,  desirous  of 
inaugurating  some  policy  to  protect  the  Indians  in  their 
just  rights  and  enforce  integrity  in  the  administration  of 
their  affairs,  as  well  as  to  improve  their  general  condi- 
tion, and  appreciating  fully  the  friendship  and  interest 
which  your  Society  has  ever  maintained  in  their  behalf, 
directs  me  to  request  that  you  will  send  him  a  list  of 
names,  members  of  your  Society,  whom  your  Society  will 
endorse  as  suitable  persons  for  Indian  agents. 

"Also,  to  assure  you  that  any  attempt  which  may  or 
can  be  made  by  your  society  for  the  improvement,  educa- 
tion, and  Christianization  of  the  Indians  under  such 
agencies  will  receive  from  him,  as  President,  all  the  en- 
couragement and  protection  which  the  laws  of  the  United 
States  will  warrant  him  in  giving. 

"  Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 
"(Signed)     E.  S.  Parker 

"Brev.  Brig.  Gen.,  U.  S.  A.  and  A.  D.  C"^ 

After  serious  consideration  on  the  part  of  Friends 
and  much  consultation  with  the  authorities  at  Wash- 
ington it  was  decided  that  Orthodox  Friends  should 
take  charge  of  the  Central  Superintendency,  embracing 
the  tribes  of  Kansas  together  with  the  Kiowas,  Co- 

9  Alice  C.  Fletcher,  Indian  Education  and  Civilization,  682. 
E.  S.  Parker  was  a  Seneca  Indian  of  the  Tonawanda  band,  N.  Y. 
He  was  later  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  for  a  short  time 
under  President  Grant. 


grant's  peace  policy.  169 

manches  and  other  tribes  in  the  Indian  Territory,  while 
Liberal  Friends  should  be  responsible  for  the  North- 
em  Superintendency,  embracing  the  various  tribes 
resident  in  the  state  of  Nebraska.  In  each  of  these 
two  great  divisions  of  the  Indian  service,  in  the  heart 
of  the  Indian  country.  Friends  were  to  nominate  mem- 
bers of  their  Society  to  occupy  the  post  of  Superin- 
tendent and  the  various  Agents  within  each  Superin- 
tendency. This  was  the  beginning  of  President  Grant's 
famous  Peace  Policy  which  was  soon  (1870)  extended 
by  the  grant  of  other  Superintendencies  to  various 
Protestant  bodies  and  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.^" 
It  is  difficult  to  say  what  was  the  chief  or  deciding 
factor  in  leading  Grant  to  devise  this  policy,  and  to 
call  upon  Friends  to  initiate  the  work.  Probably  it 
was  no  single  one  of  the  various  events  mentioned 
above,  but  many  or  all  of  them  put  together.  The 
troublous  years  of  Indian  warfare  following  1850  fur- 
nished an  immediate  motive.  The  various  activities  of 
Friends  on  behalf  of  the  Indians  at  the  same  period, 
and  the  long  tradition  of  friendship  between  Friends 
and  the  Indians  from  the  days  of  William  Penn, 
marked  the  Society  of  Friends  as  a  fit  agency  to  initiate 

10  Another  important  phase  of  the  peace  policy  was  the  appoint- 
ment in  1869  of  a  Board  of  Indian  Commissioners  made  up  of 
men  "  eminent  for  their  intelligence  and  philanthropy  to  serve 
without  pecuniary  compensation."  This  Board  had  power  to 
inspect  and  advise  the  Indian  Office.  It  made  a  hard  and  win- 
ning fight  against  the  graft  of  the  "  Indian  Ring  "  and  proposed 
many  of  the  most  enlightened  and  progressive  measures  that 
have  been  incorporated  into  the  Indian  policy  of  the  United 
States.  Several  prominent  Friends  have  belonged  to  this  Board, 
including  John  D.  Lang,  Albert  K.  Smiley,  B.  Rush  Roberts, 
Philip  C.  Garrett,  and  Daniel  Smiley.  George  Vaux,  Jr.,  of 
Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  (Orthodox)  is  Chairman  of  the 
Board  (1917). 


170  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

a  policy  of  peace  and  good  will  between  the  white  man 
and  his  red  brother. 

In  his  first  annual  message  to  Congress  (Dec.  6, 
1869)  President  Grant,  referring  to  the  Indians,  made 
the  following  statement :  "  I  have  attempted  a  new 
policy  toward  these  wards  of  the  nation.  .  .  .  The 
Society  of  Friends  is  well  known  as  having  succeeded 
in  living  in  peace  with  the  Indians  in  the  early  settle- 
ment of  Pennsylvania,  while  their  white  neighbors  of 
other  sects  in  other  sections  were  constantly  embroiled. 
They  are  also  known  for  their  opposition  to  all  strife, 
violence,  and  war,  and  are  generally  noted  for  their 
strict  integrity  and  fair  dealings.  These  considerations 
induced  me  to  give  the  management  of  a  few  reserva- 
tions of  Indians  to  them  and  to  throw  the  burden  of 
the  selection  of  agents  upon  the  society  itself.  The 
result  has  proven  most  satisfactory."^^ 

Central  Superintendency 
Orthodox  Friends. 

When  the  new  Administration  decided  to  assign  the 
entire  Central  Superintendency  to  the  care  of  Ortho- 
dox Friends,  the  latter  at  once  set  about  perfecting 
an  organization  that  could  cope  with  the  new  and  great 
responsibility.  The  central  executive  committee  that 
had  earlier  cared  for  the  Indian  concerns  of  the  four 
western  Yearly  Meetings  furnished  the  pattern  for 
the  greater  Associated  Executive  Committee  of  Friends 
on  Indian  Affairs,  which  was  organized  at  Damascus, 
Ohio,  in  June,  1869.^^    Representatives  from  the  seven 

11  Richardson,  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  7 :   38. 

12  A  previous  Conference  had  been  held  at  Indianapolis,  Mar. 
31  and  April  i,  1869,  where  a  committee  was  appointed  to  make 


grant's  peace  policy.  171 

Yearly  Meetings  of  New  England,  New  York,  Phila- 
delphia, Baltimore,  Ohio,  Indiana  and  Western  were 
present  at  this  meeting.  A  representative  appointed 
by  Iowa  Friends  was  not  able  to  be  present,  and  North 
Carolina  Yearly  Meeting  had  not  yet  appointed  dele- 
gates although  it  did  so  in  the  course  of  a  few  months. 

In  Philadelphia  an  Indian  Aid  Association  was 
formed  in  April,  1869,  and  it  is  this  Association  that 
has  cooperated  with  the  Associated  Executive  Com- 
mittee ever  since  that  time.^^ 

Enoch  Hoag,  a  pioneer  in  the  Indian  concerns  of 
Iowa  Yearly  Meeting  was  appointed  by  President 
Grant  as  Superintendent  of  the  Central  Superintend- 
ency.  The  territory  over  which  he  was  to  preside  em- 
braced all  the  area  of  Kansas  and  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory, about  144,000  square  miles  in  all.  It  was  a 
wild  country  in  those  days,  much  of  it  unsettled,  and 
untraversed  by  wagon  roads  or  railways.  Most  of  the 
streams  were  unprovided  with  bridges  or  ferries  and 
in  rainy  periods  it  was  a  difficult  and  dangerous  task 
to  ford  them. 

The  civilized  tribes,  the  Cherokees,  Creeks,  Semi- 
noles,  Choctaws,  and  Chickasaws,  in  the  eastern  part 
of  the  Indian  Territory  were  only  indirectly  under  the 
care  of  Superintendent  Hoag,  and  their  religious  and 
educational  interests  were  largely  in  charge  of  reli- 
gious denominations  other  than  Friends.  These  In- 
dians numbered  about  45,000. 

plans  for  the  permanent  organization.  For  the  various  steps  in 
the  organization  of  the  Assoc.  Exec.  Comm.  see  Friends'  Review, 
22  (1869)  :  529-530,  721-724;  23  (1870)  :  422;  24  (1870)  :  59. 
_  -^^  Friends'  Review,  22  (1869):  552,  585.  Indian  Aid  Associa- 
tions were  also  formed  later  by  the  women  Friends  of  Phila. 
and  Germantown,  the  latter  being  still  in  existence  (19 17)  and 
rendering  valuable  service. 


172  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

The  remainder  of  the  Indians,  many  of  them  wild 
and  war-like,  numbered  about  19,000.  These  Indians 
were  scattered  from  northeastern  Kansas  to  south- 
western Indian  Territory  and  were  under  the  imme- 
diate care  of  nine  Agents,  members  of  the  Society  of 
Friends.  Each  Agency  was  under  the  supervision  of 
Superintendent  Hoag  and  of  the  Commissioner  of  In- 
dian Affairs  at  Washington. 

Included  among  the  tribes  under  the  care  of  Friends 
were  the  Kickapoos,  Shawnees,  Potawatomies,  Kansas 
(or  Kaws),  Osages,  Quapaws,  Sacs  and  Foxes,  Chey- 
ennes,  Arapahoes,  Wichitas,  Kiowas,  Comanches,  and 
Apaches.^* 

In  order  to  keep  in  touch  with  this  vast  field  of 
operations  the  Associated  Executive  Committee  ap- 
pointed Dr.  William  Nicholson,  of  North  Carolina,  as 
its  General  Agent.^^  His  duty  was  to  spend  most  of 
his  time  in  the  Indian  country  as  the  direct  represen- 
tative of  the  Committee,  to  which  he  frequently  re- 
ported by  letter  or  in  person.     A  sub-comm.ittee  of 

'^'i  Friends'  Review,  2s  (1871)  :  65-102,  passim.  Also  Commis- 
sioner of  Indian  Affairs,  Report,  1869,  356-387,  460. 

15  The  General  Agent  was  paid  by  the  Assoc.  Exec.  Comm. 
while  Supt.  Hoag  and  the  Indian  Agents  under  him  were  of 
course  under  pay  from  the  Government.  Dr.  Nicholson  became 
Superintendent  of  the  Central  Superintendency  in  1876  in  place 
of  Enoch  Hoag  who  resigned  after  7  years  of  faithful  and  suc- 
cessful service.  In  1878  Dr.  Nicholson  again  became  General 
Agent  of  the  Associated  Committee  after  the  office  of  Central 
Superintendent  had  been  abolished  by  the  government.  Among 
those  who  acted  as  Indian  Agents  during  the  regime  of  Orthodox 
Friends  were  the  following:  John  D.  Miles,  Reuben  L.  Roberts, 
Mahlon  Stubbs,  James  Stanley,  Brinton  Darlington,  Lawrie 
Tatum,  Joel  H.  Morris,  John  Hadley,  Hiram  W.  Jones,  Isaac  T. 
Gibson,  Jonathan  Richards,  Thomas  Miller,  B.  W.  Miles,  John  H. 
Pickering,  J.  M.  Haworth,  M.  H.  Newlin,  Cyrus  Beede,  Levi 
Woodard,  A.  C.  Williams,  Laban  J.  Miles,  Jacob  V.  Carter. 


grant's  peace  policy.  173 

Friends  living  in  the  vicinity  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
represented  the  Associated  Committee  in  its  inter- 
course with  the  government. 

With  such  a  vast  field  of  operations  spread  out 
before  it  and  with  its  working  force  thus  duly  or- 
ganized, the  Associated  Executive  Committee  of 
Friends  on  Indian  Affairs  laid  hold  devoutly  and 
resolutely  upon  the  greatest  single  undertaking  that 
Friends  have  ever  attempted  for  the  American  In- 
dians. 

One  of  the  first  and  most  important  services  of  the 
Friends  who  became  Indian  Agents  was  to  help  quiet 
some  of  the  tribes  and  persuade  them  to  cooperate  in 
making  the  peace  policy  a  success.  Some  of  the  wilder 
tribes  of  the  southwestern  agencies  such  as  the  Kiowas, 
Comanches,  Cheyennes,  and  Arapahoes  had  been  re- 
cently on  the  war-path  or  at  least  engaged  in  raids  and 
other  depredations.  The  life  of  Agent  James  M. 
Haworth  seemed  to  be  in  danger  when  he  first  went 
among  the  wild  Kiowas  and  Comanches,  but  by  quiet 
and  firm  methods  and  refusal  to  call  on  the  military 
to  enforce  a  peace  poHcy,  the  first  crisis  was  passed.^^ 

16  Agent  James  M.  Haworth  tells  one  of  his  experiences  as 
follows :  "  After  I  took  charge  [of  the  Agency]  Lone  Wolf,  who 
is  regarded  as  a  very  dangerous  man,  came  to  see  me.  In  ac- 
cordance with  the  [former]  rule,  though  there  was  no  soldier 
about,  he  took  off  his  arms  and  left  them  outside.  After  he  had 
taken  his  seat,  I  went  out  and  brought  them  in,  and,  handing 
them  to  him,  told  him  to  put  them  on,  that  I  was  not  afraid  of 
him ;  I  had  come  a  long  distance  to  live  with  them,  was  their 
friend,  and  one  should  not  be  afraid  of  his  friend.  He  got  up, 
and  laying  both  hands  upon  me,  said  it  made  him  feel  happy ; 
said  the  Indians  were  all  talking  what  a  good  Father  Washington 
had  sent  them,  and  he  had  come  to  see  me,  and  was  ready  to  lay 
his  heart  at  my  feet,  and  do  whatever  I  told  him.  I  believe  it 
was  a  victory  over  his  wild  nature,  for  he  has  treated  me  with 
the  greatest  respect  each  time  he  has  been  in." — Friends'  Re- 
view, 26  (1873)  :  651. 


174  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

Agent  Brinton  Darlington  had  notable  success  in  quiet- 
ing the  war-like  Cheyennes  and  Arapahoes.  Superin- 
tendent Enoch  Hoag  also  did  notable  work  in  securing 
the  release  of  two  Kiowa  chiefs  from  prison  in  Texas 
on  condition  that  their  tribe  would  remain  peaceful 
thereafter. 

When  the  work  was  first  inaugurated  the  Asso- 
ciated Committee  appointed  Thomas  Wistar,  Achilles 
Pugh,  and  John  Butler  to  visit  the  various  tribes  in 
the  Central  Superintendency.  These  Friends  all  visited 
the  agencies  in  Kansas  and  Achilles  Pugh  and  John 
Butler  went  on  to  the  wilder  tribes  in  the  Indian  Ter- 
ritory near  the  Texas  border.  At  the  Wichita  and  Co- 
manche Agency  they  found  Agent  Lawrie  Tatum  deal- 
ing courageously  with  his  various  difficult  problems  and 
among  many  other  tasks  getting  a  good  acreage  of 
corn  under  cultivation  as  an  object  lesson  to  the  In- 
dians. The  visiting  Friends  consulted  with  the  various 
tribes,  giving  them  friendly  advice  and  above  all  seek- 
ing to  encourage  them  to  adopt  a  peaceable,  civilized 
mode  of  life.  It  was  on  this  journey,  however,  that 
Achilles  Pugh  departed  from  the  peace  policy  suf- 
ficiently to  frighten  two  bold  and  threatening  young 
braves  nearly  to  death  by  removing  his  plate  of  false 
teeth  suddenly  and  holding  it  out  toward  them.^^ 

Another  notable  journey  was  that  made  by  Thomas 
Wistar,  James  E.  Rhoads,  and  Marmaduke  C.  Cope 
to  the  Indian  country  in  1874.  They  held  conferences 
with  various  restless  tribes  in  order  to  get  them  to 
restrain   certain   lawless    members,    especially   young 

"^T  Friends'  Review,  23  (1869):  161-163.  Achilles  Pugh,  MS. 
Journal.  Comsnr.  Indian  Affairs,  Report,  1869:  121-124.  A  lit- 
tle later  Joseph  D.  Hoag  and  Edward  Earle  made  visits  to  the 
Indian  country. 


grant's  peace  policy.  175 

men,  who  seemed  bent  upon  continuing  a  career  of 
raiding.  To  the  Comanches  and  Apaches  Thomas 
Wistar  and  James  Rhoads  spoke  so  plainly  that  the 
Indians  were  almost  incensed.  James  M.  Haworth, 
Cyrus  Beede  and  Marmaduke  C.  Cope  also  spoke,  the 
last  named  more  soothingly.  Thus,  wrote  James 
Rhoads,  the  Indians  were  enabled  to  take  the  strong 
"medicine,"  because  they  knew  it  came  from  their 
friends.^^ 

It  was  often  necessary  for  the  Agents  to  settle  dif- 
ficulties among  the  Indians  themselves.  Thus  in  1873 
a  lawless  band  of  Osages  wantonly  murdered  the  head 
chief  of  the  Wichitas.  Immediately  the  Kiowas,  Co- 
manches, Cheyennes  and  Arapahoes  were  raUied  by 
the  Wichitas  to  help  them  take  vengeance  on  the  guilty 
Osages.  It  was  only  by  the  most  tactful  management 
on  the  part  of  Jonathan  Richards,  Agent  for  the 
Wichitas,  aided  by  other  Friends,  that  the  aggrieved 
Indians  were  persuaded  to  meet  in  peaceable  council 
with  the  Osages  and  after  much  diplomatic  maneu- 
vering to  accept  an  indemnity  of  money,  ponies  and 
goods  instead  of  demanding  blood  for  blood  as  was 
the  usual  custom  among  the  Indians.^'^ 

Aside  from  the  routine  duties  of  distributing  rations 
and  annuities,  instructing  the  Indians  in  agriculture 
and  the  various  modes  of  civiHzed  life,  and  counseling 
them  in  their  great  and  petty  difficulties,  one  of  the  all- 
important  tasks  of  the  Agents  was  to  oversee  the  es- 
tablishment of  the  system  of  government  schools. 

18  FnVwrfj'  Review,  27  (1874):  573.  Battey,  A  Quaker  Among 
the  Indians,  263-272.    Tatum,  Our  Red  Brothers,  182-187. 

19  Comnsr.  Indian  Affairs,  Report,  1873,  p.  225.  B.  Wetherill, 
I.  T.  Gibson  and  Cyrus  Beede  also  helped  in  resolving  this  dif- 
ficult situation.     See  Friends'  Review,  26  (1873)  :  762-763. 


176  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

When  Orthodox  Friends  took  charge  of  the  Central 
Superintendency  in  1869  there  had  been  only  about 
four  schools  in  operation  among  the  Indian  tribes  of 
that,  region.  By  the  aid  of  government  appropriations 
and  some  additional  help  from  various  Yearly  Meetings 
this  number  was  soon  increased  to  fifteen,  about  four- 
fifths  of  which  were  boarding  schools  and  one-fifth 
day  schools.  During  the  decade  (i  869-1 879)  in  which 
Orthodox  Friends  were  most  actively  engaged  in  this 
work  the  number  of  Indian  children  enrolled  in  these 
schools  increased  from  150  to  about  1,000.  As  Friends 
were  allowed  to  nominate  the  principal  employees  in 
each  agency  these  schools  were  largely  conducted  by 
Friends.^*^ 

A  clear  picture  of  the  work  done  in  a  school  among 
the  wilder  tribes  is  given  by  Stanley  Pumphrey,  an 
English  Friend  who  visited  the  various  agencies  in 
1876.  He  says :  "  The  Indians  under  the  care  of  the 
Agency  at  Fort  Sill  are  those  of  the  wildest  tribes,  the 
Kiowas,  the  Comanches  and  the  Apaches.  They  num- 
ber in  all  about  3,000.  The  Friends  spent  Fourth-day 
afternoon  and  evening  at  the  school,  where  about  70 
children  are  boarded,  lodged  and  brought  under  the 
care  of  an  English  Friend,  Alfred  J.  Standing,  and 
his  wife.  The  school  has  been  in  operation  rather 
more  than  twelve  months.  Of  course  the  difficulty  of 
teaching  Indian  children,  who  did  not  know  a  word  of 
English,  by  a  teacher  who  was  equally  ignorant  of 
their  language,  was  great.    But  A.  J.  S.  has  mastered 

20  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1879,  p.  45. — In  1873  the 
Assoc.  Comm.  assigned  each  Indian  school  to  the  special  care  of 
a  particular  Yearly  Meeting.  In  this  way  the  schools  often  re- 
ceived supplies  of  books,  papers,  or  even  financial  aid  from  the 
various  Yearly  Meetings. 


grant's  peace  policy.  177 

it  very  successfully.  He  began  with  numbers,  and 
went  on  with  pictures.  He  makes  large  use  of  the 
black-board  and  of  a  very  simple  and  excellent  child's 
reading  book.  They  learn  quickly,  considering  the 
circumstances ;  read  monosyllabic  narratives  about 
black  dogs  and  white  cats,  with  tolerable  fluency; 
spelled  words  of  four  letters,  getting  nine  to  eleven 
right  in  a  dozen,  and  worked  short  addition  sums  on 
their  slates.  Their  writing  seemed  even  better  than 
their  other  exercises.  They  behaved  well,  and  were 
fully  as  tractable  as  white  children,  and  less  disposed 
to  quarrel.  The  Friends  saw  them  demoUshing  their 
supper  of  bread  and  meat  with  great  vigor.  They  also 
visited  the  boys  in  bed.  They  sleep  in  a  little  draughty 
shed  that  has  been  lately  added  to  the  building,  and  are 
so  short  of  room  that  they  have  two  rows  of  berths, 
one  over  another,  ship-board  fashion.  Both  boys  and 
girls  are  clothed  in  ordinary  dress,  but  their  features 
are  unmistakably  Indian.  Long  black  hair  is  universal, 
and  many  have  necklaces,  bracelets  and  rings.  A  very 
favorite  bracelet  is  a  brass  wire  ring  filed  a  little  and 
kept  bright.  Over  forty  of  these  dubious  ornaments 
were  counted  on  the  wrist  of  one  girl." 

The  same  Friend  gave  a  still  more  favorable  report 
of  the  school  work  among  the  Caddoes,  of  the  Wichita 
Agency:  "They  are  much  farther  advanced  than  the 
Kiowas,  reading,  spelling  and  addition,  all  creditable. 
They  had  a  fair  grounding  in  grammar,  were  well 
posted  in  the  main  features  of  the  geography  of  the 
United  States  and  Europe;  their  writing  was  good, 
and  the  drawing  also.  They  answered  Scripture  ques- 
tions and  repeated  fairly."^^ 

2^  Friends'  Review,  30  (1876):  244,  261. 


178  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Aside  from  the  regular  class-room  work  the  boys  of 
suitable  age  were  usually  trained  in  various  kinds  of 
out-door  work  such  as  the  care  of  stock,  cutting  wood, 
and  the  use  of  various  tools,  while  the  girls  received  a 
similar  training  in  the  common  household  industries. 
In  this  way  a  training  in  the  peaceful  arts  became  an 
important  part  of  the  great  peace  policy. 

The  various  services  to  the  Indians  performed  by 
the  Agents  and  other  officials  in  the  field  and  by  inter- 
ested Friends  at  home  can  be  mentioned  in  part  only. 
Literary  and  temperance  societies  were  formed  among 
the  Indians  and  the  latter  especially  seemed  to  work  a 
great  moral  uplift.  Improvements  in  the  Indian  serv- 
ice were  urged  upon  the  government,  often  success- 
fully. Several  captive  white  children  were  delivered 
up  by  the  Kiowas  and  Comanches  to  Agent  Lawrie 
Tatum.^^ 

At  the  same  time  Friends  of  the  various  Yearly 
Meetings  contributed  regularly  to  the  work.  Annually 
the  Yearly  Meetings  gave  several  thousand  dollars  to 
the  work  of  the  Associated  Committee  and  other 
monies  were  collected  and  disbursed  through  various 
channels.  In  1879  it  was  estimated  that  the  expend- 
iture of  Orthodox  Friends  for  the  Indian  work  of  the 
preceding  year  had  been  $6,450. 

In  1877  the  Women's  Aid  Committee  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Indian  Aid  Association  reported  having  sup- 
plied to  the  various  Indian  stations  during  the  pre- 
ceding year  clothing,  shoes,  blankets,  cloth,  toys,  books 
and  pictures  to  the  value  of  more  than  $1,500.    Aside 

22  Friends'  Review,  26  (1872):  37,  188. 


grant's  peace  policy.  179 

from  this  the  salary  of  an  assistant  teacher  at  the 
Wyandot  Mission  had  been  paid  for  four  months. ^^ 

Very  naturally  the  religious  efforts  on  behalf  of  the 
Indians  were  of  supreme  interest  to  the  religious  body 
that  fostered  the  work.  That  the  various  Agents  and 
other  employees  nominated  by  Friends  should  be  truly 
religious  and  have  the  real  missionary  spirit,  was  a 
point  greatly  emphasized  throughout  the  period. 

It  was  a  new  experience  for  most  of  the  Indian 
tribes  to  have  "  praying "  Agents  come  among  them. 
When  Agent  Mahlon  Stubbs  took  charge  of  the  Kaw 
or  Kansas  tribe  they  were  mostly  blanket  Indians  and 
full  of  superstitious  ideas  but  he  held  religious  meet- 
ings with  them  on  Sunday  afternoons  and  found  them 
willing  to  hear  the  Christian  message.  Agent  I.  T. 
Gibson  usually  held  two  religious  meetings  every  Sun- 
day at  the  Osage  Agency  and  found  even  the  full  blood 
Indians  becoming  gradually  interested  in  Christianity. 
He  mentions  in  his  report  of  1874  that  four  ministers 
and  four  elders  of  the  Society  of  Friends  besides  sev- 
eral other  members  were  employed  on  the  reservation 
and  eight  Friends  had  recently  made  religious  visits 
among  the  Indians.^* 

The  Kansas  State  Record  in  the  fall  of  1869  re- 
marked upon  the  fact  that  the  new  Quaker  Agent  (Joel 
H.  Morris)  to  the  Potawatomies  knelt  in  prayer 
among  them  after  his  first  conference  with  the  tribe. 
The  paper  said :  "  This  is  decidedly  a  new  feature  in 
Indian  Councils.  It  has  generally  been  understood 
that  Indian  agents  are  always  ready  to  prey,  but  we 

23  Board     of    Indian     Commissioners,     Report,     1879,    p.     71. 
Friends'  Review,  30   (1877):  604. 
^^  Friends'  Review,  28  (1874)  '•   125. 


180  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

venture  that  there  are  not  many,  if  any,  persons  now 
living  in  Kansas,  who  ever  saw  an  Indian  Agent  kneel 
in  the  midst  of  his  charge,  and  ask  for  the  blessing  of 
Heaven  to  rest  upon  them."^^ 

An  impression  of  the  regular  round  of  religious  ex- 
ercises may  be  gained  from  the  report  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee  for  1876  at  which  time 
the  work  of  Friends  in  the  Central  Superintendency 
was  at  high  tide.  This  report  says :  "  Meetings  for 
worship  on  First-day  mornings  are  held  regularly  at 
ten  places  in  the  different  agencies,  and  are  attended 
by  the  agents,  their  families,  most  of  the  employees, 
some  traders  and  their  clerks,  and  the  Indian  school 
children  and  some  adult  Indians.  At  least  475  persons 
have  attended  these  meetings,  including  Indian  chil- 
dren and  adults.  Meetings  on  First-day  evenings  are 
also  held  at  nearly  all  these  places  for  select  reading 
and  devotional  exercises.  Beside  these,  on  week  days, 
devotional  meetings  are  held  at  four  places.  There 
are  11  Scripture  schools,  attended  by  617  persons. 
Religious  instruction  is  given  daily  in  all  the  schools, 
consisting  of  Scripture  readings,  Bible  lessons,  repeat- 
ing texts,  singing  hymns  and  reading  religious  tracts, 
varied  according  to  the  judgment  of  those  having  them 
in  charge.  In  all  of  the  agencies  there  is  some  ad- 
vance in  Christianizing  the  Indians. "^^ 

Mention  has  been  made  above  of  Friends  from 
various  Yearly  Meetings  who  visited  the  Indian  coun- 
try under  a  sense  of  religious  duty  to  preach  to  the 
Indians  or  to  study  the  Indian  problem  at  first  hand 


27 


25  Quoted  in  Friends'  Review,  23  (1869)  :  184. 

26  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1876,  pp.  53-54. 

27  Among  the   many   Friends   who   visited   the   Indian   country 


grant's  peace  policy.  181 

One  of  the  most  interesting  of  these  journeys  was  the 
one  already  mentioned,  made  by  Stanley  Pumphrey, 
a  well  known  English  Friend  of  the  day,  accompanied 
by  Enoch  Hoag,  of  Iowa,  formerly  Superintendent  of 
the  Central  Superintendency.  The  difficulties  and 
dangers  often  attending  a  journey  through  the  Indian 
country  in  those  days  are  depicted  in  the  following 
narrative  by  Stanley  Pumphrey :  "  On  Second-day, 
Eleventh  mo.  13th,  [1876]  they  started  at  day-break 
for  the  Pawnee  Agency,  sixty  miles  distant.  They 
had  had  such  beautiful  weather,  and  it  was  so  like 
summer  that,  although  it  rained,  they  little  suspected 
what  was  before  them.  The  rain  grew  heavier  and 
being  less  protected  than  sometimes,  and  in  an  open 
vehicle,  their  wraps  were  soon  saturated.  Then  the 
wind  blew  strongly  from  the  north  right  in  their  faces, 
and  their  outer  clothing  was  frozen  stiff,  and  the  rain 
changed  to  hail  and  snow.  It  was  too  late  to  turn 
back,  and  they  pressed  on.  About  half  way  they 
crossed  the  Cimarron,  or  Salt  Fork  of  the  Arkansas, 
the  waters  of  which  are  brackish.  On  the  opposite 
side  they  rested  and  took  dinner,  jumping  about  to 
keep  from  freezing.  At  4  P.  M.  they  were  still  ten 
miles  from  their  destination,  and  on  a  road  which 
neither  of  them  had  traveled  before,  and  the  faint 
tracks  of  which  grew  fainter  from  falling  snow;  and 

during  this  period  were  the  following :  Thomas  Wistar,  John  But- 
ler, Achilles  Pugh,  James  E.  Rhoads,  Edward  Earle,  Joseph  D. 
Hoag,  Marmaduke  C.  Cope,  Anna  C.  Allen,  Jennie  Gordon,  Isaiah 
Worth  and  wife,  Amasa  Chase  and  wife,  Timothy  Widdifield, 
Edwin  Andrews,  John  Bull,  Abby  Steer,  Thomas  H.  Stanley, 
Elkanah  and  Irene  Beard,  Lawrie  Tatum  and  wife,  Asa  and 
Emeline  Tuttle,  Jeremiah  Hubbard,  Elwood  Weesner,  Andrew 
Wooten,  Abel  Bond.  Several  of  these  remained  to  do  mis- 
sionary work. 

U-    13 


182  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

darkness  was  settling  over  them.  There  is  not  a  soli- 
tary [settler's]  house  for  fifty  miles,  so  there  was  no 
chance  for  shelter.  Though  nothing  was  said,  they 
all  began  to  fear  they  might  have  to  stay  out  all  night, 
and  realized  more  than  a  little  the  perils  of  the  wilder- 
ness. They  kept  on  their  way  very  slowly,  sometimes 
getting  out  to  walk;  the  mules  were  tired  and  the 
driver  suffered  severely.  Never  scarcely  were  poor 
travelers  more  thankful  to  see  a  light,  and  to  learn 
that  they  had  not  missed  their  way.  There  was  a  river 
to  cross,  which  they  were  afraid  to  venture  in  the 
dark.  An  Indian  offered  to  show  them  over  for  a  dol- 
lar, which  was  gladly  accepted,  and  they  were  soon 
under  the  hospitable  roof  of  Agent  [William]  Burgess. 
He  was  out,  but  his  wife,  a  kind-hearted,  motherly 
woman,  did  all  for  them  that  they  needed,  and  they 
were  soon  at  rest."^^ 

The  results  of  the  religious  efforts  of  visiting  Friends 
and  of  those  employed  on  the  reservations  were  not 
rapid  but  were  visible  after  a  few  years.  In  1876 
Agent  J.  M.  Haworth,  of  the  Kiowa  and  Comanche 
Agency,  said  in  his  annual  report  to  the  government: 
"  Besides  our  regular  morning  meeting,  which  many 
Indians  attend,  it  has  been  our  custom  to  have  one 
meeting  each  Sabbath  for  religious  instruction,  espe- 
cially for  the  benefit  of  the  adult  Indians,  in  which 
they  have  manifested  very  great  interest,  both  in  at- 
tendance and  attention ;  and,  instead  of  fleeing  from 
fright  or  trembling  with  superstitious  fear,  as  they  did 
a  few  years  ago,  when  the  guidance  and  blessings  of 

2S  Friends'  Review,  30  (1876):  293.  For  account  of  S.  Pum- 
phrey's  travels  among  the  Indians  see  Friends'  Review,  30  (1876— 
1877)  :  188-310,  passim;  also  British  Friend,  34  (1876)  :  322  to  35 
U^77)  '  59,  passim. 


grant's  peace  policy.  183 

the  Great  Spirit  were  invoked,  either  in  their  own  lan- 
guage or  in  ours,  they  now  bow  their  heads  in  reverence 
and  in  some  instances  respond  with  deep  feehng."^^ 

To  understand  the  significance  of  such  a  report  it  is 
necessary  to  bear  in  mind  that  it  refers  to  two  of  the 
wildest,  most  warlike  tribes  with  which  the  govern- 
ment has  had  to  deal. 

In  1879  Dr.  Charles  W.  Kirk  reported  that  at  the 
close  of  one  of  the  meetings  at  the  Wyandot  Mission, 
Quapaw  Agency,  after  a  sermon  on  "  Gospel  Tem- 
perance "  eleven  Indians,  all  nearly  adult  in  age,  were 
converted  and  made  profession  of  the  Christian  faith. 
A  mission  church  was  organized  on  the  spot  and  the 
new  converts  were  given  the  right  hand  of  fellowship.^*^ 

The  following  year  Elkanah  Beard  wrote  from  the 
Cheyenne  Agency  of  how  many  of  the  older  Indians 
could  not  keep  the  tears  from  welling  up  in  their  eyes 
at  times  during  the  religious  services.  That  they  really 
wanted  to  hear  the  Gospel  was  witnessed  by  the  fact 
that  many  of  them  walked  several  miles  in  the  face  of 
a  cold  wind,  some  of  them  carrying  papooses,  in  order 
to  be  present  at  what  they  called  "  the  Jesus  medicine." 

During  the  ten  years  (1869-1879)  of  the  most  active 
service  of  Friends  under  the  government  there  were 

29  Comsnr.  Indian  Affairs,  Report,  1876,  p.  51. 

30  Dr.  Charles  W.  Kirk  and  his  wife  Rachel  Hollingsworth 
Kirk  entered  the  Indian  work  in  1878,  when  they  took  charge  of 
the  Wyandotte  Government  School  in  northeastern  Okla.  In 
1885  they  took  up  mission  work  at  Shawnee  under  the  Associated 
Executive  Comm.  of  Friends.  Shortly  thereafter  Dr.  Kirk  was 
made  General  Supt.  of  all  the  mission  work  of  the  Comm.  in 
Okla.  which  position  he  filled  most  efficiently  until  his  death  in 
1893.  Rachel  Kirk  remained  in  the  Indian  work  until  1915 
when  failing  strength  made  it  necessary  for  her  to  retire  from 
active  service. — See  biog.  sketch  by  E.  K.  Calvert  in  Friends' 
Missionary  Advocate,  Sept.,  1916,  p.  14. 


184  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

hundreds  of  Indians  who  professed  conversion  and 
many  died  with  calm  and  joyful  confidence  in  the 
Christian  faith.^^ 

Aside  from  the  work  accomplished  during  this 
period  the  way  was  being  opened  for  the  permanent 
missionary  effort  sustained  ever  since  by  the  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee.  Several  Friends  em- 
ployed by  the  government  and  others  who  came  into 
the  Indian  country  on  exclusively  religious  errands 
laid  the  foundations  for  this  more  permanent  work 
which  will  be  described  in  a  later  chapter.^^ 

During  the  two  terms  of  President  Grant's  admin- 
istration the  work  of  Friends  went  forward  smoothly 
and  the  relations  with  the  government  were  most 
pleasant.  After  President  Hayes  was  inaugurated  in 
1877  several  members  of  the  Associated  Executive 
Committee  waited  on  him  to  find  out  his  attitude 
toward  the  continuance  of  Friends  in  their  official  con- 
nection with  the  Indian  work.  He  expressed  himself 
as  well  satisfied  with  the  existing  situation  and  as  de- 
siring no  change  at  that  time. 

Difficulties  soon  began  to  develop  however  making 
it  appear  that  the  new  administration  was  not  in  great 
sympathy  with  the  plan  worked  out  by  President  Grant. 
A  new  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  took  office  in 
the  fall  of  1877  and  at  once  showed  his  antipathy  to 
the  work  of  Friends.  He  gave  the  Associated  Com- 
mittee to  understand  that  he  considered  many  of  the 
Friends  employed  in  the  Central  Superintendency  as 
inefficient  and  some  of  them  dishonest.     Very  soon 

31  For  the  above  items  on  religious  results  see  Friends'  Review, 
33  (1879):  249;  same,  34  (1880):  206;  Indiana  Y.  M,  Minutes, 
1879,  p.  40. 

32  See  below,  p.  201  ff. 


grant's  peace  policy.  185 

Friends  were  deprived  of  several  Agencies  and  the 
office  of  Central  Superintendent  was  abolished.  Mem- 
bers of  the  Associated  Committee  visited  President 
Hayes  and  tried  to  come  to  an  agreement  with  him 
upon  a  basis  for  continuing  the  work.  The  agreement 
however  was  disregarded  by  the  Commissioner  of  In- 
dian Affairs  and  to  Friends  it  seemed  evident  that 
political  considerations  were  being  allowed  to  thwart 
them  in  their  efforts  to  aid  the  Indians.  Therefore  in 
May,  1879,  the  Associated  Committee,  in  a  formal  note 
to  President  Hayes,  resigned  all  further  responsibility 
to  the  Government  for  the  management  of  the  Indians, 
whether  by  the  nomination  of  Agents  or  otherwise.^^ 

Several  Friends  already  employed  as  Agents,  teach- 
ers, or  in  other  capacities  in  the  Indian  country  con- 
tinued in  office  for  some  years  after  this  time  and  in 
1882  the  Associated  Committee  even  consented  to 
nominate,  at  the  request  of  the  Indian  Commissioner, 
an  Agent  for  the  Sac  and  Fox  Agency. 

During  the  years  from  1879  to  1885  the  educational 
work  in  the  government  schools  had  a  very  prominent 
place  in  the  interests  of  the  Associated  Committee. 
The  schools  in  the  agencies  still  under  the  care  of 
Friends  and  the  Wyandot  School  in  the  Quapaw 
Agency  were  largely  in  charge  of  officers  and  teachers 
who  were  Friends.  The  same  was  true  of  a  few  other 
government  schools  especially  in  agencies  formerly 
held  by  Friends. 

The   extent  and  nature   of   the   educational   work 

33  Associated  Exec.  Comm.,  Reports,  1^77-79.  It  should  be 
said  that  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  who  assailed  the 
ability  and  integrity  of  Friends  was  peremptorily  removed  from 
his  position  early  in  1880  while  under  charges  of  gross  mal- 
feasance in  office. 


186  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

during  this  period  may  best  be  learned  from  the  fol- 
lowing excerpts  from  the  report  of  the  Associated  Ex- 
ecutive Committee  for  1885  :  "  Six  Government  Board- 
ing Schools  and  three  Day  Schools  have  been  mostly 
supplied  with  teachers  and  officers  who  were  Friends. 
These  have  had  an  enrollment  of  585  pupils.  There 
have  been  besides  these  129  pupils  in  the  two  White's 
Institutes  of  Indiana  and  Iowa/*  making  over  700 
pupils.  There  have  been  54  Friends  employed  as 
Superintendents,  Matrons,  and  Teachers,  during  the 
year.  Two  Indian  girls  have  been  educated  at  Earl- 
ham,  one  of  whom  now  teaches  at  the  Wyandot  School. 
One  boy  has  been  educated  in  the  Maryville  Normal 
Institute,  Tennessee,  at  the  cost  of  the  Philadelphia 
Committee.  The  Forest  Grove  U.  S.  Indian  School, 
Oregon,  has  been  under  the  care  of  Dr.  H.  J.  Minthorn 
a  part  of  the  year,  and  is  now  in  charge  of  Dr.  W.  V. 
Coffin.  The  school  has  been  managed  with  efficiency, 
and  the  results  have  been  excellent."^^ 

So  it  came  about  that  while  the  principal  period  of 
Friends'  activities  under  the  "  Peace  Policy  "  extended 
only  through  one  decade,  1 869-1 879,  yet  a  considerable 
work,  especially  in  the  government  schools,  was  con- 
tinued six  years  longer.  In  1884  John  D.  Miles,  who 
had  served  as  an  Indian  Agent  from  the  beginning  of 
Grant's  policy,  resigned  from  the  Cheyenne  and  Ara- 
pahoe Agency.  The  next  year  Laban  J.  Miles,  the 
only  remaining  Orthodox  Friends'  Indian  Agent,  re- 
signed from  the  Osage  Agency.     At  the  same  time 

3*  These  two  Institutes  were  not  managed  by  the  Associated 
Committee  and  will  be  considered  in   a  later  chapter,  p.  234  ff. 

35  Indiana  Y.  M.  Minutes,  1885,  p.  18. — The  Forest  Grove 
School,  while  under  the  care  of  Dr.  Coffin  was  moved  to  the  out- 
skirts of  Salem,  Oregon,  and  was  given  by  him  the  name  "  Chem- 
awa,"  which  it  still  bears. 


grant's  peace  policy.  187 

Friends  were  dropped  from  their  positions  in  the  gov- 
ernment Indian  schools.  After  this  time  there  were  a 
very  few  instances  of  the  appointment  of  Friends  to 
positions  as  Indian  Agents  or  in  the  Indian  schools, 
but  such  appointment  did  not  again  become  a  "  policy  " 
of  the  government. 

The  Northern  Superintendency 
Liberal  Friends. 

The  Northern  Superintendency,  in  the  state  of  Ne- 
braska, comprising  six  agencies  with  an  Indian  popu- 
lation of  about  6,000,  was  given  by  President  Grant 
into  the  charge  of  Liberal  Friends. 

The  various  Yearly  Meetings  entered  with  vigor  and 
enthusiasm  into  the  new  work  and  throughout  the 
period  general  conferences  attended  by  delegates  from 
all  the  Yearly  Meetings  were  held  to  consider  the  various 
problems  relating  to  Indian  welfare.  A  small  Central 
Executive  Committee  looked  after  the  details  of  the 
work  in  the  intervals  between  the  general  conferences. 

Samuel  M.  Janney^®  was  placed  in  charge  as  Super- 
intendent, and  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office  at 
Omaha,  Nebraska,  in  the  latter  part  of  May,  1869. 

As  soon  as  possible  after  taking  office  he  visited  the 
various  agencies  under  his  charge  and  in  September 
was  able  to  report  to  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs the  general  conditions  among  the  Indian  tribes. 

The  Winnebagoes,  under  the  care  of  Agent  Howard 
White,  were  in  a  poor  condition  physically  and  mor- 
ally.    They  lived  in   uncleanly,   ill-ventilated   lodges, 

36  Samuel  M.  Janney  was  born  in  Loudoun  County,  Virginia,  in 
1801  and  died  there  in  1880.  He  was  author  of  a  Life  of  IVm. 
Penn  and  a  History  of  the  Society  of  Friends  and  other  works. 
See  Memoirs  of  Samuel  M.  Janney,  1881. 


188  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

suffered  from  diseases  of  a  scrofulous  nature,  and 
were  addicted  to  drinking,  gambling  and  other  vices. 
There  were  about  1,300  Indians  in  this  Agency. 

The  Omahas  numbered  about  1,000  and  were  under 
the  charge  of  Dr.  Edward  Painter.  These  Indians  en- 
joyed the  unusual  privilege  of  dwelling  upon  their  own 
ancestral  lands.  They  were  orderly,  progressive  and 
provident  and  seldom  required  rations  from  the  gov- 
ernment for  subsistence.  Most  members  of  the  tribe 
realized  the  need  of  turning  to  the  pursuit  of  agricul- 
ture and  in  general  to  the  ways  of  civilized  life.  Their 
freedom  from  the  use  of  intoxicating  liquors  was 
notable. 

The  Santee  Agency  contained  nearly  1,000  Santee 
Sioux  Indians  and  was  under  the  care  of  Agent  Asa 
M.  Janney,  a  brother  of  the  Superintendent.  These 
Indians  had  been  greatly  helped  by  Episcopal  and 
Presbyterian  missionaries  and  many  of  them  were  pro- 
fessing Christians.  They  lived  usually  in  log  houses 
which  though  rudely  built  were  much  more  com- 
fortable and  healthful  than  the  lodges  and  wigwams 
occupied  by  most  of  the  Indians  of  the  superintend- 
ency. 

The  largest  tribe  and  the  most  warlike  under  the 
care  of  Liberal  Friends  was  the  Pawnee.  Jacob  M. 
Troth  accepted  this  Agency  and  found  it  to  contain 
about  2,400  Indians,  nearly  twice  as  many  as  the  next 
largest  tribe  in  the  superintendency.  The  members  of 
this  tribe  were  generally  backward  in  their  civilization 
but  some  of  them  seemed  anxious  to  adopt  a  more 
progressive  mode  of  life.  They  lived  in  miserable,  ill- 
ventilated  earth  lodges  and  consequently  suffered  much 
from  disease. 


grant's  peace  policy.  189 

The  Otoe  Agency  contained  about  440  Otoes  and 
Missourias  and  was  in  charge  of  Agent  Albert  L. 
Greene.  These  Indians  lived  in  squalid,  damp  lodges 
and  were  great  sufferers  from  scrofula  and  other  dis- 
eases. They  were  extremely  ignorant  and  supersti- 
tious but  seemed  amiable  and  willing  to  learn. 

Finally  there  was  the  Great  Nehama  Agency  under 
the  care  of  Agent  Thomas  Lightfoot.  These  Indians 
were  few  in  number  and  had  been  on  the  decline  for 
some  years.  There  were  about  228  lowas  and  84  Sac 
and  Fox  Indians  living  on  two  adjoining  reservations. 
They  were  addicted  to  the  use  of  liquor,  and  although 
very  poor  were  quite  averse  to  any  laborious  employ- 
ment. They  depended  largely  on  their  annuity  for 
subsistence  and  clothing. 

Such  were  the  conditions  found  by  Superintendent 
Janney  in  the  several  agencies  under  his  charge.  In 
summing  up  the  situation  and  needs  of  his  wards  he 
wrote  as  follows :  "  Experience  has  shown  that  the  In- 
dian can  be  civilized,  and  that  under  favorable  circum- 
stances he  will  accept  the  benign  principles  of  Chris- 
tianity— ^the  only  means  whereby  a  nation  can  be  ad- 
vanced to  the  highest  grade  of  refinement,  and  secured 
in  the  possession  of  permanent  prosperity. 

"  To  accomplish  this  great  work  in  the  shortest  time 
possible,  the  Indians  now  living  on  reservations  should 
have  allotments  of  land  in  severalty  secured  to  them  by 
patent ;  they  should  be  assisted  in  building  comfortable 
houses  and  furnished  with  implements  of  agriculture 
and  live  stock ;  well  conducted  schools  should  be  main- 
tained among  them,  and  above  all,  they  should  be 
placed  under  the  care  of  good  and  enlightened  men 
and  women  whose  kindly  and  familiar  intercourse  with 


190  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

them  would  secure  their  confidence,  win  them  from 
their  savage  ways,  and  lead  them  in  the  path  of 
peace."^^ 

In  the  summer  of  1869  a  delegation  of  Friends  from 
the  eastern  Yearly  Meetings  journeyed  to  the  Indian 
country  and  made  a  tour  of  the  Nebraska  agencies.  In 
this  delegation  were  Benjamin  HallowelP^  of  Balti- 
more Yearly  Meeting,  .Franklin  Haines  of  New  York 
Yearly  Meeting,  and  John  H.  Dudley  and  Joseph 
Powell  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting.  The  ex- 
periences and  observations  of  these  Friends,  related  in 
a  full  report  on  their  return,  gave  to  Friends  of  their 
several  constituencies  a  vivid  picture  of  life  among  the 
Indians. 

The  delegation  of  Friends  held  religious  meetings 
among  the  Indians  when  opportunity  offered  and  to 
these  meetings  came  Indians,  some  of  them  fearfully 
painted,  with  feathers  in  their  head-dress,  and  bones, 
bears'  claws,  and  beads  around  their  necks.  The  In- 
dian children,  many  of  the  women,  and  some  of  the 
men  sat  on  the  floor  and  seemed  to  sit  with  a  peculiar 
ease  and  grace. 

At  the  Winnebago  Agency  the  visiting  Friends  saw 
the  Indians  just  after  Agent  Howard  White  had 
distributed  the  annuity  goods.     The  Indians  passed 

87  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  Report,  1869,  pp.  332-356. 
— Other  Indian  Agents  who  served  during  the  regime  of  Liberal 
Friends  were:  Joseph  Webster,  William  Burgess,  Jesse  W. 
Griest,  C.  H.  Roberts,  T.  T.  Gillingham,  Taylor  Bradley,  Mahlon 
B.  Kent,  Charles  H.  Searing,  Jacob  Vore,  Augustus  Brosius, 
Isaiah  Lightner,  Charles  Hill. 

38  Benjamin  Hallowell  was  born  at  Abington,  Pa.,  in  1799  and 
died  at  Sandy  Spring,  Md.,  in  1877.  He  was  for  many  years  a 
recognized  leader  of  the  Indian  work  among  Liberal  Friends. 
See  Autobiography  of  Benjamin  Hallowell,  1883. 


grant's  peace  policy.  191 

in  procession,  with  the  goods  carried  sometimes  on 
the  back  of  a  pony,  sometimes  on  the  back  of  a  squaw. 
The  men  were  on  foot,  on  ponies,  in  wagons,  with 
tomahawks,  pipes,  war  clubs,  sabres  and  battle-axes. 
The  procession  extended  for  three  miles  and  was 
visible  for  two  miles  as  it  passed  over  the  undulating 
prairie  and  along  the  hillsides. 

Another  typical  picture  of  Indian  life  that  appealed 
strongly  to  the  visiting  Friends  was  among  the  wild 
Pawnees.  The  impression  made  upon  the  Friends  is 
best  given  in  their  own  words :  "  The  evening  was 
beautiful,  and  hundreds  of  Indians,  with  their  bright 
red  blankets,  could  be  seen  wandering  or  riding  over 
the  broad  prairie  in  all  directions,  giving  a  life  and  pic- 
turesqueness  to  the  scene,  and  awakening  much 
thought,  which  would  be  tinctured  with  sadness ! 
What  is  to  be  the  result?  How  can  we  get  hold  of 
them  so  as  to  give  beneficial  direction  to  their  wan- 
derings ?  "^^ 

In  seeking  to  answer  this  great  question  rightly,  the 
Friends  of  the  seven  Yearly  Meetings  (including  Illi- 
nois Yearly  Meeting  organized  in  1875)  labored  ear- 
nestly and  diligently  to  meet  the  many  great  needs  of 
their  red  brothers.  Many  delegations  and  many  indi- 
vidual Friends  visited  the  Indian  country  in  the  fol- 
lowing years  to  study  the  problems  at  first  hand.  On 
their  return  home  they  reported  their  observations  and 
conclusions  to  the  various  committees  and  conferences 
having  the  work  in  charge.  Each  Yearly  Meeting  in- 
terested itself  in  one  particular  Agency  and  furnished 
funds  and  supplies  to  the  Indians  there.  At  the  same 
time  the  Superintendent  and  Agents  in  the  field,  feel- 

S9  Friends'  Intelligencer,  26  (1869-1870)  :  580. 


192  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

ing  a  responsibility  not  only  to  their  Indian  wards  and 
to  the  government,  but  also  to  their  meetings  and 
friends  at  home,  labored  diligently  and  effectively  to 
advance  the  interests  and  civilization  of  the  Indians. 
They  at  once  began  to  establish  and  build  up  a  govern- 
ment school  system,  they  carried  out  the  allotment  of 
land  in  severalty  among  some  of  the  tribes,  they  en- 
couraged the  Indians  in  the  settled  pursuit  of  agri- 
culture and  in  the  building  of  comfortable  homes,  they 
distributed  the  annuity  goods  and  settled  tribal  and 
inter-tribal  disputes,  and  finally  reported  all  their 
activities  to  the  government  and  made  recommenda- 
tions conducive  to  the  further  progress  of  the  tribes 
under  their  care. 

Many  and  varied  were  the  exigencies  faced  by  the 
Agents  in  dealing  with  factions  and  parties  within  the 
several  tribes.  Howard  White  has  related  personally 
to  the  author  how  he  changed  the  chiefs  and  estab- 
lished an  elective  system  among  the  Winnebagoes. 
Early  in  his  service  as  Agent  for  this  tribe  he  found 
the  tribal  government  dominated  by  a  group  of  old 
conservative  chiefs  who  were  utterly  incompetent  and 
strongly  adverse  to  all  civilizing  influences.  These 
men  were  opposed  by  many  of  the  younger  Indians 
and  half-breeds  who  believed  that  their  only  salvation 
as  a  people  was  to  adopt  the  ways  of  white  men  and 
become  civilized.  Consequently  Agent  White  stepped 
in  and  deposed  all  the  old  chiefs  and  appointed  younger 
and  more  progressive  men  in  their  places.  After  a 
period  of  time  he  allowed  an  election  for  chiefs  to  be 
held  and  the  result  was  that  progressive  men  were 
largely  chosen. 

His  story  of  the  election  shows  how  hard  it  is  for  a 


grant's  peace  policy.  193 

primitive  people  to  become  inured  to  the  ways  of  mod- 
ern democracy.  He  announced  the  hours  during  which 
the  polls  would  be  open.  At  the  close  of  the  time  the 
ballots  were  counted  and  the  result  announced.  At  once 
a  defeated  candidate  rode  off  at  full  speed  on  his  pony 
and  in  due  time  returned  with  enough  of  his  Indian 
friends  who  had  not  voted  to  turn  the  tide  of  election 
in  his  favor.  The  Agent  explained  to  him  that  the 
polls  were  closed  and  the  election  over.  Such  stringent 
regulations  were  too  much  for  the  Indian  to  under- 
stand and  he  went  away  sorrowful,  protesting  against 
the  gross  injustice  of  the  white  man's  ways  of  gov- 
ernment. 

Later  on  Agent  White  found  it  more  satisfactory  to 
the  Indians  to  hold  the  elections  along  a  road  way,  and 
merely  allow  the  voters  to  line  up  on  opposite  sides  of 
the  road  in  company  with  their  respective  candidates. 
Thus  any  dissatisfied  partisan  could  pass  down  the  line 
and  verify  the  count.  To  the  suspicious  mind  of  the 
Indian  the  simplicity  and  openness  of  this  system  were 
far  preferable  to  the  intricacies  and  secrecy  of  the 
white  man's  vaunted  Australian  ballot. 

Superintendent  Samuel  M.  Janney  retired  from  the 
Northern  Superintendency  in  the  fall  of  1871,  having 
served  most  efficiently  for  something  over  two  years. 
During  that  time  much  had  been  accomplished  for  the 
advancement  of  the  Indians  under  his  charge.  Lands 
in  severalty  had  been  allotted  to  the  Omahas,  Winne- 
bagoes,  and  Santee  Sioux.  Much  land  had  been  broken 
and  improved  for  agriculture.  The  more  progressive 
Indians  had  built  houses,  and  had  been  supplied  with 
wagons,  plows,  mowing  machines  and  other  agricul- 
tural implements.    Above  all  several  schools  had  been 


194  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

built  and  a  generation  of  Indian  children  started  in  the 
paths  of  knowledge.^^ 

Samuel  M.  Janney  was  succeeded  in  the  Central 
Superintendency  by  Barclay  White  of  New  Jersey,  a 
Friend  who  had  been  for  some  time  actively  interested 
in  the  Indian  work  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting. 
Under  him  the  work  so  well  begun  was  carried  for- 
ward with  vigor  and  ability.  New  day  schools  and 
some  industrial  boarding  schools  were  built,  and  the 
Indians  were  encouraged  in  various  ways  to  the  further 
development  of  agricultural  pursuits.  Various  meas- 
ures for  the  help  of  the  Indians  were  annually  urged 
upon  the  government  at  Washington.  In  harmony 
with  suggestions  repeatedly  made  by  Samuel  M.  Jan- 
ney and  Barclay  White  a  field  matron,  supported  by 
Friends,  was  sent  out  to  the  Santee  Sioux.  She  visited 
the  Indian  homes  and  instructed  the  women  and  chil- 
dren in  the  various  domestic  arts  of  civilized  life. 

As  an  example  of  the  advancement  made  by  the 
more  progressive  tribes  the  following  excerpt  from 
Superintendent  Barclay  White's  report  of  1873  on  the 
Winnebagoes  is  in  point:  "At  the  time  of  his  (Agent 
Howard  White's)  taking  charge  (four  years  pre- 
viously) they  were  a  rebellious,  turbulent  people,  with 
chiefs  adverse  to  the  adoption  of  civilized  habits  and 
customs,  and  but  few  improvements  had  been  made  on 
the  reservation.  Now  this  beautiful  tract  of  country 
is  dotted  over  with  substantially  built  cottages,  which 
have  been  built  upon  farms  that  have  been  allotted  in 
severalty.  These  farmers  own  their  wagons,  horses, 
harness,  and  furniture  of  their  houses,  dress  in  civi- 

*o  Annual  Reports  o£  Supt.  Janney  in  Reports  of  Commissioner 
of  Indian  Affairs,  1869,  1870,  1871. 


grant's  peace  policy.  195 

lized  costume,  raise  crops  and  take  them  to  market  for 
sale.  Surely  they  are  on  the  high  road  to  civiliza- 
tion."*i 

In  his  report  of  1875,  referring  to  the  general  situ- 
ation of  all  the  tribes  in  the  Superintendency,  Barclay 
White  wrote :  "  During  the  six  years  the  Santee  Sioux, 
Winnebagoes,  Omahas,  Pawnees,  Otoes  and  Mis- 
sourias,  lowas,  and  Sacs  and  Foxes  of  Missouri  have 
been  under  the  care  of  the  Society  of  Friends  they 
have  made  marked  advancement  and  improvement  in 
civilization  and  industrial  pursuits.  No  murder  of  a 
white  person  has  been  charged  upon  them  for  four 
years,  and  although  several  Indians  have  been  killed 
by  whites  during  that  time,  for  which  crime  the  mur- 
derers were  not  punished,  no  attempt  at  retaliation  has 
been  made  by  the  Indians.  As  a  rule,  these  Indians 
are  honest  and  temperate  in  regard  to  strong  drink ;  in 
these  respects  being  probably  above  the  average  of 
the  same  number  of  white  persons  in  the  State  in 
which  they  reside.  The  majority  of  the  Winnebagoes, 
Santee  Sioux,  and  lowas  have  given  up  the  chase  as  a 
means  of  subsistence,  and  are  devoting  their  attention 
to  agriculture.  The  disposition  and  intention  of  all 
the  tribes  is  good  and  tending  towards  the  arts  of  civi- 
lization. With  just  treatment,  the  adults  are  easily 
controlled,  and  the  children  are  apt  scholars  in  most 
branches  of  school-learning. 

"Were  it  possible  for  the  Nebraska  Indian  to  re- 
ceive from  his  white  neighbor  the  treatment  and  respect 
due  to  a  man,  and  from  the  Government  equal  rights 
with  the  white  man  before  the  law,  he  would  soon 
stand  as  his  peer,  and  become  as  valuable  a  citizen."*^ 

41  Comsnr.  of  Indian  Affairs  Report,  1873,  p.  185. 

42  Same,  1875,  p.  314. 


196  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  above  report  was  made  just  one  year  before  the 
Northern  Superintendency  was  closed.  Early  in  June, 
1876,  Barclay  White  received  orders  from  the  Com- 
missioner of  Indian  Affairs  to  close  his  office  on  the 
30th  of  that  month.  He  complied  promptly  and  there- 
after the  various  Friends  who  were  Indian  Agents  in 
Nebraska  reported  directly  to  the  Commissioner  in 
Washington.  This  was  near  the  close  of  Grant's  sec- 
ond term.  When  the  Hayes  administration  came 
into  power  it  soon  became  evident  to  Liberal  Friends, 
as  it  did  to  Orthodox  Friends  laboring  in  the  Central 
Superintendency,  that  the  old  order  was  changing. 
Year  by  year  the  work  was  made  more  difficult  by  the 
increase  of  various  poHtical  influences.  The  efforts 
of  the  Indian  Agents  were  nullified  by  hostile  orders 
from  the  Commissioner  or  by  the  defiant  attitude  of 
Agency  employees  forced  upon  the  Agents  contrary 
to  their  desire.  One  by  one  the  various  agencies  were 
given  up  until  after  1880  only  the  Great  Nehama  and 
the  Santee  Sioux  were  left  under  the  care  of  Friends' 
Agents.  The  former  was  held  until  1882  and  the 
latter  until  1885.  In  the  latter  year  when  Isaiah 
Lightner  withdrew,  the  experiment  inaugurated  by 
President  Grant  came  to  an  end  with  Liberal  Friends 
as  it  did  in  the  same  year  with  Orthodox  Friends. 
Although  a  Friend,  Charles  Hill,  was  appointed  to  the 
Agency  after  a  short  interim  and  served  for  about  five 
years,  it  was  understood  that  "  with  the  retirement  of 
Agent  Lightner,  the  official  connection  of  the  Society 
of  Friends  with  the  United  States  Government  in  the 
care  of  the  Indians  ceased."*^ 

During    the    ten    years    1 869-1 879    when    Liberal 

*3  Baltimore  Y.  M.  Minutes,  1886,  p.  31. 


grant's  peace  policy.  197 

Friends  were  having  a  large  place  in  the  Peace  Policy 
it  is  estimated  that  more  than  $60,000  was  donated 
by  the  various  yearly  meetings  for  supplies,  clothing, 
and  various  kinds  of  help  for  the  Indians. 

The  results  of  this  and  of  the  efforts  of  Superin- 
tendents, Agents,  school-teachers  and  other  officers  in 
the  field  were  highly  encouraging  with  most  of  the 
tribes.  The  small  band  of  Sacs  and  Foxes  and  the 
Otoes  and  Missourias  made  rather  slow  progress  on 
account  of  untoward  conditions  within  the  jtribes. 
The  wild  Pawnees  were  constantly  harassed  by  the 
roving  bands  of  Sioux  but  made  commendable  prog- 
ress up  to  the  time  of  their  removal  to  the  Indian 
Territory.  Among  the  remaining  tribes  the  success 
of  Friends  was  scarcely  less  than  remarkable.  The 
Santee  Sioux,  Winnebago,  Omaha,  and  Iowa  Indians, 
at  the  close  of  the  official  service  of  Friends  for  them, 
were  living  for  the  most  part  upon  their  own  home- 
steads, with  comfortable  houses,  and  modern  farming 
implements.  They  had  ample  school  facilities  and  in 
short  were  well  on  the  way  to  become  educated,  self- 
supporting  American  citizens.** 

Nor  did  Liberal  Friends  forget  their  former  wards 
when  the  official  service  came  to  an  end.  The  early 
suggestions  of  Samuel  M.  Janney  and  Barclay  White 
as  to  the  desirability  of  sending  white  women  among 
the  Indians  were  put  vigorously  into  practice  about 
1890.  The  function  of  the  field  matron  was  to  go  into 
the  Indian  homes  and  instruct  the  women  and  children 
in  the  arts  of  household  economy  as  practiced  among 
civilized  peoples.     The  experiment,  supported  at  first 

**  Barclay    White,    The    Friends    and    the    Indians,    1886,    pp. 
11-15. 
14 


198  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

by  Friends,  was  soon  adopted  by  the  government,  and 
was  successful  to  a  marked  degree. 

In  this  way  and  by  various  other  methods  Friends 
for  many  years  kept  in  touch  with  some  of  the  tribes 
formerly  under  their  charge  and  were  always  ready  to 
aid  them  or  any  other  Indians  that  needed  the  help 
of  a  friendly  hand.*^ 

Conclusion. 

Such  was  the  work  done  by  Orthodox  Friends  in 
the  Central  Superintendency  and  by  Liberal  Friends 
in  the  Northern  Superintendency.  Other  denomina- 
tions did  similar  work  in  various  places  but  the  part 
taken  by  Friends  was  conspicuous  because  they  were 
selected  to  inaugurate  the  new  "  Peace  Policy."  It 
was  essentially  President  Grant's  policy  and  it  hardly 
outlived  his  administrations.  It  was  begun  in  1869, 
largely  curtailed  by  Hayes  about  a  decade  later,  and 
was  brought  to  a  final  close  about  1885  at  the  begin- 
ning of  Cleveland's  first  administration. 

That  the  policy  was  a  success  will  probably  never 
be  seriously  questioned.  There  were  faults  in  the 
whole  Indian  system  that  militated  against  it.     There 

45  In  1898  Baltimore,  Phila.,  and  New  York  Yearly  Meetings 
were  still  engaged  somewhat  in  Indian  work.  See  Proceedings 
of  Friends'  General  Conference,  Richmond,  Ind.,  1898,  pp.  113- 
114. — In  191 1  the  Indian  Committee  of  Bait.  Y.  M.  reported 
"  very  little  activity.  ...  In  fact,  during  the  past  decade,  the 
standard  of  effort  has  been  gradually  lowering  among  all  the 
Yearly  Meetings,  until  at  this  time  hardly  any  reference  is  made 
to  the  subject  in  any  but  ours,  and  very  few  and  circumscribed 
are  the  channels  of  usefulness  left  open  to  us."  The  Bait. 
Committee  however  continued  to  make  contributions  to  various 
efforts  on  behalf  of  the  Indians.  Friends'  Intelligencer,  68 
(1911):  786-787. 


grant's  peace  policy.  199 

were  faults  In  the  work  done  by  Friends.  Yet  on  the 
whole  the  effort  was  crowned  with  a  fine  success. 
The  Indians,  many  of  them  wild  and  warlike,  or  filthy 
and  debased,  made  remarkable  progress  toward  civi- 
lization, especially  in  the  early  years  when  Friends 
were  unhampered  by  adverse  political  influences.  The 
establishment  of  a  school  system,  the  instruction  in 
agriculture,  the  training  of  the  Indian  women  in  do- 
mestic arts,  the  teaching  by  precept  and  example  of 
the  benign  principles  of  Christianity, — these  were  the 
outstanding  features  and  these  wrought  the  prime  suc- 
cesses of  the  work  of  Friends.  And  before  all,  and 
above  all,  the  "Peace  Policy"  brought  peace. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL    NOTE. 

Associated  Executive  Committee  of  Fjriends  on  Indian 
Affairs,  Annual  Reports. 

These  reports,  which  began  with  the  formation  of 
the  Committee  in  1869,  form  the  chief  source  of  infor- 
mation for  the  activities  of  Orthodox  Friends  during 
the  period.  They  were  published  separately  and  also, 
during  long  periods,  in  the  annual  Minutes  of  Indiana, 
Iowa,  Western,  and  other  Yearly  Meetings.  Copious 
extracts  also  printed  in  Friends'  Review. 

Battey,  Thomas  C.    A  Quaker  Among  the  Indians.    Bos- 
ton.    1875. 

Experiences  among  some  of  the  wildest  tribes  during 
the  early  years  of  the  "  peace  policy." 

Biographical  and  other  miscellaneous  materials  are  men- 
tioned in  footnotes  of  the  above  chapter. 

Board  of  Indian  Commissioners,  Annual  Reports.    Gov- 
ernment Printing  Office,  Washington,  D.  C. 

These  reports  contain  much  important  data  on  the 
situation  in  the  various  agencies. 


200  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Central  Executive  Committee  on   the  Indian   Con- 
cern, Annual  Reports. 

These  reports  cover  the  work  of  Liberal  Friends. 
Nothing  approaching  a  complete  file  of  them  has  been 
found  but  copious  extracts  v^ere  printed  in  the  Friends' 
Intelligencer.  A  manuscript  Minute  Book  (1869-1878) 
of  the  annual  Convention  of  Delegates,  to  v^hich  the 
Central  Executive  Comm.  reported,  is  in  the  vault  of 
the  Meeting  House  at  Fifteenth  and  Race  Sts.,  Phila. ; 
also  the  Minute  Book  No.  2  (1871-1884)  of  the  Comm. 
on  Indian  Affairs  of  Phila.  Yearly  Meeting. 

Commissioner    of    Indian    Affairs,    Annual    Reports. 
Government  Printing  Office,  Washington,  D.  C. 

These  volumes  contain  the  annual  reports  to  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  Superintendents  and  Agents  in  the  field. 
These  reports  together  with  the  annual  reports  of  the 
Associated  Executive  Committee  and  the  Central  Ex- 
ecutive Committee,  mentioned  above,  form  the  main 
fund  of  source  material  on  the  subject  of  this  chapter. 

Friends'  Intelligencer^  Philadelphia. 

This  weekly  publication  of  Liberal  Friends  contains 
reports  of  various  committees  and  delegations,  letters 
from  agents  in  the  field  and  other  important  material. 

Friends'  Review.    Philadelphia. 

This  weekly  publication  contains  reports  of  various 
committees  and  delegations,  letters  from  agents  in  the 
field,  and  other  important  material  on  the  work  of 
Orthodox  Friends. 

Tatum,    Lawrie.      Our    Red    Brothers.      Philadelphia. 
1899. 

Much  valuable  and  highly  interesting  material  on 
experiences  of  Orthodox  Friends  by  one  who  was  for 
some  time  an  Indian  Agent. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  OKLAHOMA  MISSIONS. 

The  most  extensive  system  of  Indian  missions  ever 
maintained  by  Friends  is  that  maintained  during  re- 
cent years  among  the  tribes  now  resident  within  the 
state  of  Oklahoma. 

In  northeastern  Oklahoma,  close  to  the  Missouri 
line,  are  the  Wyandotte  and  Seneca  missions.  In  the 
central  part  of  the  state  are  the  missions  to  the  Kicka- 
poos  and  Shawnees,  and  somewhat  further  south  one 
to  the  Big  Jim  band  of  Shawnees.  Further  north  are 
three  stations,  among  the  Otoes,  lowas  and  Osages, 
respectively.  Other  stations,  maintained  until  re- 
cently, have  been  discontinued  on  account  of  a  scat- 
tering of  the  Indian  population,  the  influx  of  whites 
into  the  vicinity,  or  because  it  seemed  best  to  relin- 
quish the  field  to  the  missionary  efforts  of  other  re- 
ligious bodies. 

At  each  one  of  the  stations  a  missionary  and  his 
family  reside,  and  at  each  mission  excepting  the  one 
at  Hominy  among  the  Osages  there  is  a  meeting  house 
in  which  religious  services  are  held.  Bible  schools  are 
maintained  for  the  instruction  of  young  and  old,  and 
house  to  house  visitation  by  the  missionaries  is  a 
prominent  part  of  the  work.  At  Wyandotte,  Otoe 
and  Shawnee  there  are  government  Indian  schools 
and  a  considerable  work  is  done  among  the  pupils  in 
these  schools.     The  missionary  resident  at  Shawnee 

201 


202  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

besides  having  charge  of  the  local  work  at  that  mis- 
sion has  a  general  oversight,  as  superintendent,  over 
all  the  stations  in  Oklahoma. 

This  extensive  system  of  missions  is  under  the  care 
of  the  Associated  Executive  Committee  of  Friends  on 
Indian  Affairs  and  is  the  legacy  that  was  left  to  that 
committee  when  the  official  duties  assigned  to  them  in 
1869  by  President  Grant  were  laid  down. 

When  it  became  certain,  as  described  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter,^  that  the  administration  of  President 
Hayes  was  not  in  sympathy  with  the  work  being  done 
by  Friends  in  an  official  capacity,  it  became  more  and 
more  evident  that  a  door  was  nevertheless  opening 
for  a  missionary  effort  in  the  field  that  had  become  so 
familiar  and  so  appealing  during  the  preceding  years. 

In  reality  the  missionary  effort  began  as  early  as 

1869  because  many  of  the  first  Indian  Agents  ap- 
pointed by  President  Grant  were  zealous  in  their 
efforts  to  Christianize  the  Indians  under  their  charge. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  many  Friends  who  took 
positions  in  the  government  Indian  schools,  and  of 
others  who  early  entered  the  field  on  purely  religious 
errands.^  Thus,  while  the  official  activities  of  Friends 
were  gradually  drawing  to  a  close  during  the  years 
1879  to  1885,  the  missionary  effort  was  growing  apace. 
In  1880  four  Friends  with  their  wives  were  devoting 
themselves  to  the  religious  instruction  of  the  Indians. 
Asa  C.  and  Emeline  H.  Tuttle,^  who  had  been  re- 

1  See  p.  184  ff.,  above. 

2  See  p.  182  ff.  for  evangelizing  activities  of  Indian  Agents  and 
others.  Several  of  the  Friends  mentioned  in  note  27,  pp.  1 80-1 81. 
who  visited  the  Indian  country  remained  to  do  missionary  work. 

s  Asa  C.   and  Emeline   H.   Tuttle  entered  the  Indian  work  in 

1870  under  the  auspices  of  the  Associated  Executive  Committee, 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  203 

leased  by  the  government  from  the  charge  of  the 
Modoc  and  Quapaw  Boarding  School,  were  continued 
for  religious  work  in  the  same  field  by  the  Associated 
Committee.  Elkanah  and  Irene  Beard  were  doing 
missionary  work  among  the  Cheyennes,  Jonathan 
Ozbun  and  wife  among  the  Kaws  and  Osages,  Frank- 
lin Elliott  among  the  Shawnees,  while  Jeremiah  Hub- 
bard'' made  visits  twice  a  month  to  the  Senecas. 

Realizing  the  meaning  of  the  transition  that  was 
taking  place  the  Associated  Committee  wrote  in  1880: 
"  The  committee  having  fully  examined  the  work  con- 
ducted under  its  supervision,  considered  what  should 
be  its  future  action.  Having  been  providentially  re- 
lieved from  responsibility  to  the  government,  and  thus 
withdrawn  from  the  complications  which  this  mixed 
responsibility  involved,  it  was  felt  that  never  before 
was  the  Lord's  blessing  so  manifest  in  our  labors. 
With  gratitude  we  recognize  that  He  seems  to  have 
placed  before  us  an  open  door  for  teaching  the  In- 
dians a  knowledge  of  the  saving  truths  of  Christian- 

They  opened  a  school  among  the  Ottawa  Indians  and  received 
Indian  orphans  as  boarding  scholars.  Their  work  expanded 
rapidly  and  was  soon  adopted  and  supported  by  the  government. 
They  were  later  transferred  to  the  Quapaw  mission,  and  did  a 
wonderful  work  for  the  Modocs,  as  mentioned  below,  p.  208  f. 
They  retired  from  the  Indian  service  in  1881.  Asa  C,  Tuttle  died 
Nov.  II,  1898.     Emeline  H.  Tuttle  is  still  living,  19 16, 

*  Jeremiah  Hubbard  ("  Uncle  Jerry  ")  was  born  in  Indiana  in 
1837  and  died  at  Miami,  Okla.,  in  1915.  He  began  religious 
work  among  the  Indians  in  the  winter  of  1879-80  and  for  many 
years  labored  faithfully  and  efficiently  among  the  Wyandots, 
Senecas,  Ottawas,  Modocs  and  other  Indians  in  northeastern 
Oklahoma.  Perhaps  no  other  missionary  to  the  Indians  was  so 
widely  known  among  Friends  of  the  United  States.  An  interest- 
ing though  sketchy  autobiography  is  his  Forty  Years  Among  the 
Indians,  Miami,  Okla.,  1913-  See  also  memorial  sketch  in  Amer- 
ican Friend,  22    (1915)  :    335. 


204  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

ity ;  and  for  aiding  them  in  literary  and  industrial  edu- 
cation."^ 

Into  this  open  door  of  service  Friends  now  entered 
under  the  leadership  of  their  Associated  Executive 
Committee.  While  the  most  outstanding  develop- 
ments during  the  following  six  years,  1 879-1 885,  as 
narrated  in  the  preceding  chapter,^  were  connected 
with  the  agencies  and  government  schools  where 
Friends  still  held  official  positions,  yet  there  was  a 
considerable  development  in  the  purely  missionary 
effort. 

This  work  gradually  became  established  in  two 
principal  districts  that  have  remained  as  permanent 
centers  for  the  activities  of  the  Associated  Committee. 
The  work,  mentioned  above,  that  was  being  carried  on 
in  1880  by  Franklin  Elliott  among  the  Absentee  Shaw- 
nees  in  the  Sac  and  Fox  Agency  became  the  nucleus 
about  which  several  mission  stations  sprang  up,  and 
this  part  of  the  field  may  be  termed  the  central  dis- 
trict. The  mission  at  Shawnee  became  a  few  years 
later  the  seat  of  the  general  superintendent  of  all  the 
Friends'  mission  in  the  Indian  Territory. 

The  other  center,  of  what  may  be  called  the  north- 
eastern district,  was  at  Ottawa  in  the  Quapaw  Agency, 
where  Asa  and  Emeline  Tuttle  by  years  of  devoted 
labor  had  built  up  a  splendid  religious  work. 

The  missionary  effort  of  Friends  at  this  early  period 
was  more  extensive  in  the  northeastern  district  and 
in  this  district  was  organized  in  1881  a  Monthly  Meet- 
ing of  Friends  among  the  Indians.  Asa  and  Emeline 
Tuttle   had   done   missionary   work   for   many   years 

5  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1880,  p.  82. 

6  See  p.  185,  above. 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  205 

among  the  Ottawas,  Quapaws,  and  Modocs  in  this  dis- 
trict, and  Jeremiah  Hubbard,  John  M.  Watson, 
Thomas  Stanley  and  others  about  1880-1881  had 
made  good  progress  in  holding  meetings  among  them 
and  among  the  near-by  Senecas.  At  the  request  of 
Jeremiah  Hubbard  about  ninety  Indians  of  the  above 
mentioned  tribes  were  received  into  membership  by 
Timbered  Hills  Monthly  Meeting,  Kansas.  It  was 
then  decided  to  establish  under  the  authority  of  Spring 
River  Quarterly  Meeting  four  Preparative  Meetings 
among  the  Ottawas,  Senecas,  Modocs  and  Wyandots 
respectively,  and  of  these  four  meetings  was  composed 
Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting,  set  up  September  3, 
1881.'^ 

In  the  central  district  the  work  under  Franklin 
Elliott  at  Shawneetown  had  been  continued  success- 
fully under  the  especial  care  of  New  York  Yearly 
Meeting.  In  the  period  1881-1884  this  field  of  service 
had  opened  new  opportunities  and  was  transferred  by 
New  York  Friends  to  the  care  of  the  Associated  Com- 
mittee. 

Among  the  intractable  Mexican  Kickapoos  a  few 
miles  away  a  new  work  was  being  slowly  and  labo- 
riously built  up  by  John  Clinton  and  wife.  With  a 
vision  of  the  future  possibilities  in  this  vicinity 
Friends  decided  to  build  permanently  upon  the  foun- 
dations thus  laid  and  in  1884  a  Monthly  Meeting  was 
established  at  Shawnee  with  a  membership  of  about 
40  Indians.  The  following  year  a  meeting  house  was 
built. 

About  the  same  time  John  F.  Mardock  was  seeking 
to  interest  the  Kaws  of  the  Osage  Agency  in  the  truths 

7  J.  Hubbard,  Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting,  4-25. 


206  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

of  Christianity,  and  he  and  James  K.  Osbun  were 
trying  to  reach  some  of  the  Osages  and  Cherokees. 

The  above  narrative  indicates  fairly  the  extent  and 
organization  of  the  missionary  work  that  was  built  up 
during  the  six  years  following  1879,  and  that  served 
as  a  foundation  for  the  purely  missionary  effort  that 
was  to  be  continued  by  the  Associated  Committee  after 
the  last  official  duty  under  the  United  States  govern- 
ment was  relinquished  in  1885.  In  that  year  the  Com- 
mittee could  report  twelve  places  where  religious 
meetings  were  held,  one  Indian,  Frank  Modoc,  who 
had  been  recorded  a  minister,  and  two  monthly  meet- 
ings with  a  combined  membership  of  168  Indians. 

The  experiences  of  the  workers  in  the  field  during 
this  period  rival  in  human  and  historic  interest  those 
of  the  days  of  Penn  or  Savery.  Jeremiah  Hubbard 
tells  of  a  birthday  dinner  held  in  the  Ottawa  Friends' 
meeting  house  in  1881  for  old  Grandma  King  of  the 
Ottawa  nation.  Nearly  all  the  members  of  the  tribe 
were  present  and  after  a  good  dinner  there  came  the 
usual  flow  of  speech.  "  Grandma "  was  said  to  be 
113  years  old,  and  she  could  speak  three  languages, 
Ottawa,  French  and  English.  Her  memory  seemed 
to  be  perfectly  clear  and  in  jovial  reminiscence  she 
told  the  assembled  company  how  the  young  braves 
had  come  to  see  her  about  one  hundred  years  before. 

The  type  of  religious  and  evangelistic  effort  carried 
on  among  the  Indians  at  this  time  is  fairly  represented 
by  the  following  incidents  involving  the  Wyandot 
Indian,  Frank  Whitewing.  Jeremiah  Hubbard  tells 
how  he  with  Alpheus  Townsend  and  Nicholas  Cotter 
attended  the  funeral  of  Frank's  sister.  When  the 
coffin  was  lowered  into  the  grave  Whitewing  dropped 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  207 

on  his  knees  and  gave  voice  to  a  powerful  and  moving 
prayer  in  the  Wyandot  tongue.  The  Friends  pres- 
ent were  much  stirred  by  the  impressive  and  solemn 
scene  there  in  the  valley  of  Sycamore  Creek,  down 
deep  in  the  timber,  with  snow  lying  on  the  ground, 
and  red  men  and  white  standing  in  the  presence  of 
the  dead  voicing  their  common  faith  in  a  life  that  does 
not  end  with  the  grave. 

"  We  returned  back  to  the  mission,"  writes  Jere- 
miah Hubbard  in  his  journal,  "  and  several  of  the  In- 
dians coming  in,  we  had  a  good  meeting ;  found  John 
M.  Watson  there  at  meeting  this  evening.  John  read 
one  of  the  Psalms  and  spoke  and  prayed  powerfully 
to  the  Master  for  us  all.  I  then  spoke  awhile;  some 
ten  or  twelve  persons  arose  to  be  prayed  for.  Our 
meeting  was  much  favored  of  the  Lord  and  unto  Him 
be  all  the  praise." 

Frank  Whitewing  had  been  In  former  years  one  of 
the  wildest  Indians  in  the  neighborhood  but  after  his 
conversion  to  Christianity  led  an  exemplary  life. 
Even  after  his  body  had  been  weakened  by  tubercu- 
losis he  often  rode  many  miles  to  attend  meeting. 
When  he  was  unable  to  leave  home  and  had  been  ab- 
sent from  meeting  several  times  Jeremiah  Hubbard 
went  to  see  him :  "  I  knocked.  Some  one  said.  Come. 
I  opened  the  door.  There  lay  Frank,  and  his  wife  was 
standing  by  the  fire.  I  shook  hands  with  his  wife, 
and  then  went  to  him.  He  said :  *  I  glad  you  come.  I 
know  you  come.'  I  said,  '  How  did  thee  know  I 
come  ? '  He  said,  *  I  ask  the  Lord  to  send  you  and  I 
knowed  he  would,  for  I  ask  Him  to.' "  It  then  de- 
veloped that  he  was  in  destitute  circumstances  and  his 
friend's  coming  was  the  means  of  relieving  his  want. 


208  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

His  absolute  faith  in  prayer  was  typical  of  the  simple 
trust  that  was  manifested  by  the  Indians  who  made 
profession  of  Christianity  through  the  work  of  the 
missions.^ 

Perhaps  the  most  strikingly  successful  missionary 
effort  in  the  history  of  Friends'  work  with  the  Indians 
was  that  accomplished  among  the  Modoc  Indians. 
This  work  was  begun  by  Asa  and  Emeline  Tuttle  im- 
mediately after  the  Modocs  were  brought  as  prisoners 
of  war  from  Oregon  to  the  Quapaw  Agency  after  the 
terrible  Modoc  War.  The  story  of  how  many  of  the 
scarred  and  hardened  warriors  who  had  fought  with 
unexampled  fierceness  in  the  lava  beds  of  southern 
Oregon  became  humble,  peace-loving,  self-sacrificing 
followers  of  the  Christ,  would  perhaps  nearly  equal 
any  story  in  the  whole  history  of  Christian  missions. 

One  of  the  early  converts  was  Frank  Modoc, 
"  Steamboat  Frank."  His  little  girl  came  under  the 
influence  of  Friends  at  school  and  thus  carried  the 
Christian  influence  into  her  home.  She  told  her  father 
the  things  she  learned.  She  gave  thanks  at  meal  time 
and  in  the  evening  sang  and  prayed.  After  a  time  a 
fatal  illness  came  upon  her  and  just  before  her  death 
she  placed  her  hand  in  her  father's  and  said  to  him, 
"  Father,  shake  hands  and  promise  you  will  meet  me 
in  heaven."  His  dying  child's  appeal  was  the  means 
of  his  conversion.  He  confessed  himself  a  great  sin- 
ner and  from  the  time  of  his  daughter's  death  walked, 
as  he  called  it,  "  straight  and  solid."  If  anyone  asked 
him  about  his  former  life  as  a  warrior  he  would  dis- 
miss the  subject  saying,  "I  leave  that  way  back  long 
time  ago."    He  was  a  devoted  Christian  and  he  and 

8  J.  Hubbard,  Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting,  i6,  56  flf. 


THE  OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  209 

his  wife  often  walked  a  distance  of  about  fourteen 
miles  to  attend  the  mission  service.  He  became  a 
recognized  minister  among  Friends  and  was  of  great 
influence  in  his  tribe,  even  visiting  the  remnant  of  his 
people  in  Oregon  to  carry  the  Christian  message  to 
them.  Feeling  his  lack  of  education  he  journeyed  to 
Friends'  Oak  Grove  Seminary  at  Vassalboro,  Maine, 
but  there  his  health  gave  way  and  he  died  in  1886  at 
the  home  of  his  devoted  friends  John  and  Myra  E. 
Frye,  in  Portland,  Maine. ° 

As  a  result  of  his  example  and  of  the  earnest  efforts 
of  the  mission  workers,  the  Modoc  meeting  became 
the  largest  and  in  many  ways  the  best  meeting  of 
Friends  among  the  Indians. 

Isaac  Sharp,  a  prominent  English  Friend,  visited 
several  of  the  missions  in  1883  and  was  greatly  im- 
pressed with  the  meeting  among  the  Modocs.  In  his 
account  he  mentioned  especially  the  vigorous  singing 
of  hymns,  and  an  impressive  prayer  by  "  Steamboat " 
Frank. 

Henry  Stanley  Newman  describes  one  of  the  meet- 
ings during  his  visit  as  follows:  "The  12th  of  Janu- 
ary 1890  was  Sabbath  day.  A  fierce  blizzard  was 
raging,  and  the  white  man's  church  was  empty.  The 
snow  beat  into  our  faces  as  we  drove  along  in  the  in- 
tense cold  to  the  Friends'  Meeting  House  in  the  Modoc 

9  J.  Hubbard,  Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting,  5.  Indiana  Y.  M. 
Minutes,  1882,  p.  45  ;  1884,  p.  25  ;  1885,  p.  24.  H.  S.  Newman, 
MS.  Narrative  of  Sojourn  among  the  Indians,  pp.  13-14.  Mahlon 
H.  Stubbs,  Jesse  Hobson,  Levi  M.  Gilbert  and  others  later  visited 
the  Modocs  in  Oregon  and  witnessed  the  good  results  of  Frank 
Modoc's  work  there.  Indiana  Y.  M.  Minutes,  1886,  p.  22;  1890, 
p.  72;  1891,  p.  14.  Levi  M.  Gilbert  did  religious  work  and  was 
for  a  time  at  the  head  of  the  government  school  at  the  Klamath 
Agency.    See  Christian  Worker,  21  (1891)  :  213-214. 


210  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

camp,  where  John  and  JuHa  Hall  work  as  mission- 
aries. As  we  drew  near  we  saw  the  Modocs  coming 
from  various  directions  through  the  storm.  There 
were  sixty  of  them  present!  Moses  Kyst,  a  Modoc 
warrior,  was  the  first  to  'bow  in  lowly  prayer.  Scar- 
faced  Charley,  one  of  the  old  chiefs  from  the  lava 
beds,  also  spoke.  Faithful  WiUiam,  Robin  Hood, 
Qinton,  and  other  of  their  heroes  were  present.  The 
Modoc  meeting  is  a  marvellous  testimony  to  the  mi- 
raculous and  conquering  power  of  the  Gospel  of 
Christ."^« 

The  general  lines  of  missionary  effort  to  be  fol- 
lowed by  Friends  in  the  Oklahoma  field  had  been 
clearly  laid  in  1885  when  the  official  work  under  the 
government  was  reHnquished.  The  chief  element  in 
all  activities  was  to  be  the  preaching  of  the  gospel 
message  and  the  building  up  of  mission  churches 
among  the  Indians.  The  missioniaries  were  also  to 
lay  great  emphasis  upon  house  to  house  visitation, 
comforting  and  helping  the  needy  in  every  possible 
way,  material  and  spiritual.  Bible  Schools  were  to  be 
organized  in  which  Indian  children  and  adults  might 
learn  the  truths  of  Christianity  as  recorded  in  the 
Scriptures.  Special  attention  was  to  be  given  to  the 
children  in  government  schools  that  were  in  proximity 
to  any  of  the  missions.  As  it  transpired  Friends  were 
occasionally  appointed  after  1885  to  teach  in  the  gov- 
ernment schools,  although  not  to  such  an  extent  as 
formerly.  In  such  cases  a  very  great  influence  was 
exercised  over  the  school  children.    Such  schools  were 

10  H.  S.  Newman,  MS.  Narrative  of  Sojourn  among  the  In- 
dians, pp.  14-15.  Isaac  Sharp's  account  in  British  Friend,  42 
(1884):  6-9;  The  Friend  (London),  24  (1884):   13-16. 


SCAR-FACED  CHARLEY 


A    MODOC,    ONCE    A    FIERCE   WARRIOR     LATER    A    MEMBER   OF   THE 
SOCIETY   OF    FRIENDS. 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  211 

sometimes  aided  'by  Friends  through  gifts  of  equip- 
ment or  added  support  for  the  teacher,  and  in  a  few 
instances  private  schools  were  supported  by  Friends, 
a  sHght  tuition  being  charged  to  aid  in  the  main- 
tenance. 

Such  was  to  be  the  type  of  work  done  and  it  has 
not  been  altered  in  any  considerable  way  during  the 
thirty  years  of  its  development.  To  be  sure  all  effort 
to  maintain  private  schools  has  ceased  since  the  public 
school  system  has  been  largely  extended,  and  few 
Friends  have  been  appointed  in  recent  years  to  teach 
in  government  schools.  Aside  from  these  changes 
however  the  chief  developments  to  be  recorded  are 
those  connected  with  the  growth  or  decline  of  the  work 
as  a  whole  and  in  various  localities,  the  opening  of 
new  mission  stations  and  the  closing  of  old  ones,  and 
the  changing  conditions  of  Indian  life  that  have  af- 
fected the  whole  mission  situation. 

Chronologically  the  period  may  be  divided  roughly 
into  three  sub-periods  of  about  one  decade  each,  repre- 
senting approximately  the  length  of  time  spent  in  the 
field  by  each  Superintendent  until  1914.  Dr.  Charles  W. 
Kirk  took  charge  of  the  mission  at  Shawnee  in  1885, 
was  appointed  Superintendent  of  the  whole  field  in 
1888,  and  served  until  his  death  in  1893.  His  wife 
then  acted  as  Superintendent  until  the  following  year. 
The  period  of  nearly  a  decade,  from  1885  to  1894, 
may  be  thought  of  then  as  about  representing  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  first  Superintendent,  Dr.  Kirk. 
George  N.  and  L.  Ella  Hartley  were  appointed  Super- 
intendents in  1894  and  served  until  1904,  while  Wil- 
liam P.  and  Abigail  C.  Haworth  served  in  the  same 
capacity  from  1904  to  1914. 


212  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  first  of  these  three  periods  was  a  time  of  vig- 
orous growth  and  expansion.  The  work  was  new 
and  inspiring,  the  Indians  were  living  in  fairly  com- 
pact groups  with  few  white  people  settled  among 
them,  and  Friends  had  some  splendid  starting  points 
for  mission  work  in  the  localities  where  some  of  their 
number  had  served  as  Indian  Agents  or  in  the  gov- 
ernment schools. 

As  a  result  the  work  expanded  rapidly  between 
1885  and  1894.  In  the  latter  year  four  Monthly  Meet- 
ings were  reported,  new  ones  having  been  organized 
during  the  period  at  Blue  Jacket  in  the  Cherokee  coun- 
try, and  among  the  lowas.  A  Quarterly  Meeting, 
called  Grand  River,  had  been  established  consisting 
of  these  Monthly  Meetings  and  one  across  the  Kansas 
line.  The  four  Monthly  Meetings  in  the  Indian  and 
Oklahoma  Territories  comprised  thirteen  Preparative 
Meetings  and  twenty-three  meetings  for  worship  be- 
sides several  out-stations  where  meetings  were  held 
occasionally.  The  Indian  membership  of  the  meet- 
ings had  grown  during  the  nine  years  from  168  to 
426.  In  the  latter  year  there  were  fifteen  Bible 
Schools  with  an  enrollment  of  807  pupils  and  an 
average  attendance  of  469.^^ 

Several  new  meeting  houses  were  built  among  the 
Indians  at  this  time  and  so  extensive  and  successful 
did  the  work  appear  that  during  the  period  grants  of 
land  were  made  by  the  government  to  several  of  the 
mission  stations,  with  the  consent  or  at  the  request  of 
the  Indians. 

A  notable  development  during  the  period  was  the 
fact  that  so  many  white  people  had  joined  the  meet- 

11  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes^  1894,  pp.  18-19. 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  213 

ing-s.  In  1894  there  were  two  meetings  composed  of 
whites  only  and  all  told  there  were  567  white  members 
as  against  426  Indians.  This  seemed  to  be  due  partly 
to  the  fact  that  so  many  whites  were  settling  in  the 
Indian  country  and  partly  because  the  white  people 
seemed  to  be  more  susceptible  than  the  Indians  to  the 
evangelizing  efforts  of  the  missionaries.  For  a  time 
the  Associated  Committee  was  quite  favorable  to  the 
work  among  the  whites  because  of  its  indirect  influence 
upon  the  Indians.  By  1894  however  the  number  of 
white  adherents  was  growing  so  rapidly  that  the  Com- 
mittee began  to  remind  the  missionaries  that  the  In- 
dians were  to  be  the  chief  and  immediate  objects  of 
their  labor.^^ 

One  of  the  notable  successes  of  this  period  was  the 
work  estabhshed  among  the  lowas  in  the  central  mis- 
sion district.  Meetings  were  held  among  them  about 
1887  by  Charles  W.  Frazier  and  others  and  very  soon 
a  permanent  work  was  built  up.  A  day  school  was 
established  which  was  taught  at  various  times  by 
Elizabeth  Test,  Mary  Sherman,  Rachel  Kirk,  Lina  B. 
Lunt  and  others.  Various  Friends  visited  the  station 
and  did  religious  work  among  the  Indians.  John  F. 
Mardock  labored  faithfully  and  efficiently  at  this  sta- 
tion and  much  of  the  success  achieved  during  the 
period  was  due  to  his  devoted  service.  The  day  school 
was  largely  supported  by  the  Philadelphia  Indian  Aid 
Association  and  the  mission  work  proper  by  New 
England  Friends  in  the  early  years  and  later  by 
Friends  of  Baltimore  Monthly  Meeting.  Before  the 
close  of  the  period  under  discussion  a  Monthly  Meet- 
ing had  been  established  among  the  lowas  and  the  sta- 

12  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1894,  p.  19. 
15 


214  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

tion  was  giving  great  promise  of  permanent  useful- 
ness." 

Another  work,  built  up  more  slowly  and  labori- 
ously, but  destined  to  be  more  permanent,  was  that 
among  the  Mexican  Kickapoos  about  twelve  miles 
away  from  the  mission  at  Shawnee,  in  the  central 
mission  district.  Mention  has  been  made  above  of 
the  work  begun  among  the  Kickapoos  by  John  Clin- 
ton and  his  wife  about  1883.  It  was  a  difficult  and 
discouraging  work  and  almost  no  impression  could  be 
made  on  the  Indians  for  several  years.  Some  of  the 
leading  Kickapoos  declared  that  if  they  took  up  the 
white  man's  learning  and  religion  the  Great  Spirit 
would  kill  them.  Consequently  they  decided  to  kill 
any  missionary  who  attempted  to  convert  them. 

About  1886,  however,  Elizabeth  Test  began  her 
work  among  these  Indians.  She  had  been  employed 
for  some  years  as  a  teacher  in  the  government  Indian 
schools  but  the  passion  of  her  life  was  to  aid  in  carry^ 
ing  the  Christian  message  to  the  Indians.  When  she 
first  began  her  work  among  the  Kickapoos  she  lived 
in  a  bark  hut  among  them.  The  way  to  the  hearts  of 
the  Indians  seemed  however  to  be  entirely  closed  at 
this  time  and  for  a  period  she  taught  a  day  school  and 
did  religious  work  among  the  lowas.  In  1890  a  few 
of  the  Kickapoos  asked  her  to  teach  them  and  she  has- 
tened to  open  a  school  in  a  tent  to  receive  the  nine 
pupils  that  awaited  her.  The  door  was  at  last  open 
but  the  way  was  still  to  be  long  and  rugged  that 
reached  to  the  hearts  of  these  Indians.     Space  does 

13  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1887,  pp.  16-17;  1889,  pp. 
17-18;  1890,  pp.  73-74;-  1892,  pp.  26,  29;  1893,  pp.  15-16.  For 
the  sudden  decline  of  the  work  among  the  lowas  at  a  later 
period  see  pp.  228-229,  below. 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  215 

not  permit  to  recount  the  great  discouragements,  the 
little,  hard-won  victories  and  the  utter  sacrifices  by 
which  a  success  was  at  last  attained  that  would  be 
hard  to  surpass  in  the  history  of  Friends'  work  for 
the  Indians.  A  typical  sacrifice  was  the  giving  by 
Elizabeth  Test  of  $i,ooo  of  her  own  money  for  a 
building  to  house  the  mission  home  and  school.  A 
well-earned  reward  was  the  grant  by  a  Kickapoo 
Chief  of  the  land  upon  which  the  building  might  be 
erected.  Ably  assisted  through  many  years  by  Rachel 
Kirk  and  Lina  B.  Lunt,  Elizabeth  Test  succeeded  at 
last  in  gaining  the  entire  confidence  of  the  Indians  and 
building  up  a  work  that  stands  as  a  shining  example 
of  Christian  devotion  and  self-sacrifice.  She  is  known 
as  "  Teacher "  among  Indians  and  white  people  far 
and  near,  and  her  life  work  has  ennobled  the  title.^* 

Perhaps  the  most  successful  school  carried  on  or 
aided  by  Friends  in  this  period  was  the  one  at  Skia- 
took  (later  called  Hillside)  taught  by  Eva  Watson, 
assisted  part  of  the  time  by  Olive  Chamberlain.  Eva 
Watson  had  had  a  notable  success  in  the  Modoc  School 
before  going  to  Skiatook.  At  the  latter  place  she  soon 
built  up  a  splendid  school,  which  in  1890  had  an  en- 
rollment of  sixty-nine.  Many  pupils  boarded  in  the 
families  near  the  school,  some  of  them  in  the  mission 
which  was  maintained  at  this  time  by  Eva  Watson's 
parents,  John  M.  and  Eliza  Watson.  In  1890  the 
Associated  Committee  said  of  this  school :  "  It  appears 

1*  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1887,  p.  16;  1890,  pp.  73-74; 
1891,  p.  16;  1892,  p.  27;  1893,  p.  17;  1894,  p.  22.  Elizabeth  Test 
is  still  at  the  Kickapoo  station  (1917),  the  veteran  worker  in  the 
Oklahoma  field.  For  a  sketch  of  the  work  of  Elizabeth  Test 
written  by  Myra  Esther  Frye,  one  of  her  Indian  pupils,  see 
Friends'  Missionary  Advocate,  Sept.,  1916. 


216  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

to  be  the  best  school  within  the  radius  of  twenty-five 
miles,  and  the  pupils  crowd  the  houses  around  it  so  as 
to  be  near  the  school  The  classes  range  from  those 
in  the  alphabet  chart  to  those  studying  higher  arith- 
metic. All  are  taught  some  Bible  truths  daily;  they 
have  learned  the  ten  commandments,  the  Lord's 
prayer,  the  ist  and  23d  Psalms,  and  the  golden  text 
for  the  year.  The  school  is  a  powerful  agency  for 
good."i5 

The  teaching  of  religious  truth  in  connection  with 
the  regular  school  studies  was  practiced  in  other 
schools  that  were  taught  or  aided  by  Friends  during 
this  period,  such  as  those  among  the  Kickapoos,  lowas, 
Modocs,  Ottawas,  Senecas,  Miamis,  and  Cherokees. 
One  of  the  sucessful  teachers  of  the  period  was  Ari- 
zona Jackson,  a  Wyandot  Indian  girl  who  had  been 
educated  at  Earlham  College,  Indiana. 

While  space  does  not  permit  to  describe  the  work  of 
many  devoted  missionaries  and  teachers^^  of  this 
period  a  brief  mention  should  be  made  of  some  of  the 
Indian  workers  who  labored  devotedly  among  their 
people  at  this  time,  supplementing  the  work  of  their 
white  friends  who  had  first  taught  them  the  message 

15  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1887,  p.  14;  1889,  p.  16; 
1890,  p.  74;   1891,  p.  16;  1893,  p.  17. 

16  Other  regular  workers  or  assistants  at  this  time,  most  of 
them  married  and  ably  assisted  by  their  wives,  were :  Jesse  Stan- 
ley, John  W.  Hall,  John  B.  Bishop,  Charles  W.  Frazier,  Robert 
K.  Quiggan,  Charles  W.  Goddard,  Amos  Davis,  Robert  W.  Hod- 
son,  William  Neal,  William  L.  George,  Thomas  W.  Alford, 
Charles  E.  Pearson,  John  F.  Sherman.  During  this  period  Ben- 
jamin S.  Coppock  served  ably  for  some  years  as  Supt.  of  the 
Chilocco  Indian  Training  School,  a  post  held  by  Dr.  H.  J.  Min- 
thorn  at  an  earlier  period  (1884-1885).  This  of  course  was  not 
a  missionary  work  but  it  opened  the  way  for  much  religious 
influence  among  the  pupils. 


LUCY   WINNEY 


A   CHRISTIAN    INDIAN   WOMAN,   AN    ELDER    OF    THE   SOCIETY   OF    FRIENDS. 

SEE    P.    217 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  217 

that  they  passed  on  to  their  fellows.  John  and  Lucy 
Winney,  the  former  a  Seneca  and  the  latter  a  Wyan- 
dot, were  perhaps  the  most  widely  known,  as  they 
traveled  somewhat  among  Friends  outside  of  the  In- 
dian Territory.  These  consecrated  Christian  Indians 
were  for  long  years  faithful  workers  among  the 
Senecas  and  largely  by  their  own  labors  built  up  a 
flourishing  meeting  at  Cayuga.  They  were  Elders  in 
Seneca  Meeting  and  were  held  in  highest  esteem  by 
all  who  knew  them.  The  present  writer  had  the  priv- 
ilege of  meeting  Lucy  Winney  in  191 3,  a  short  time 
before  her  death,  and  can  testify  personally  to  the 
grace  of  her  beautiful  Christian  character. 

The  Modoc  Indians  reached  a  remarkable  degree 
of  spiritual  development,  many  of  them  taking  a  ready 
part  in  religious  activities.  After  attending  one  of 
their  meetings  Dr.  Kirk  wrote:  "It  has  rarely  been 
our  privilege  to  attend  a  meeting  giving  more  evidence 
of  true  spirituality  than  that  of  the  Modocs  on  the  oc- 
casion of  a  recent  visit."^^ 

Henry  Stanley  Newman  and  his  wife  Mary  Anna 
Newman,  Friends  from  England,  visited  the  Okla- 
homa missions  during  this  period,  in  the  winter  of 
1889-1890,  and  their  relation  of  personal  experiences 
paints  vivid  pictures  of  the  Indian  life  and  the  mission 
work  at  that  time.  H.  S.  Newman  describes  a  meet- 
ing that  they  attended  at  the  home  of  Jane  Alsop,  a 
Wyandot  Indian  woman :  "  They  sang,  '  Come  ye 
sinners,  poor  and  needy,'  and  every  member  present 
gave  a  testimony  in  a  few  words,  some  in  English, 
others  in  their  own  language.  They  speak  with  very 
little  emotion,  in  fact  the  Indians  seem  to  have  been 

17  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1893,  p.  16. 


218  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

trained  for  generations  to  hide  their  emotions.  Yet 
these  Wyandot  Friends  are  very  tender  spirited,  and 
the  tears  quietly  trickled  down  their  faces  before  they 
were  aware,  and  they  have  a  singular  reverence  for 
and  perception  of  the  Divine  Presence." 

Mary  Anna  Newman  describes  a  Monthly  Meeting 
which  she  attended  among  the  Senecas :  "  I  sat  beside 
Smith  NichoUs  and  John  Winney  both  of  whom  are 
Indians.  Not  much  more  than  a  year  ago  the  former 
was  a  terrible,  bad  man,  but  one  night  when  Jeremiah 
Hubbard  was  speaking  about  Christ,  he  stood  and  lis- 
tened outside,  and  the  words  touched  his  heart,  and 
then  and  there  he  was  converted.  It  was  a  wondrous 
change  that  was  wrought  in  him.  He  has  been  re- 
ceived into  membership  with  Friends,  and  now  holds 
meetings  himself,  while  his  altered  life  preaches  still 
more  eloquently  than  his  words.  .  .  .  The  Indians 
are  a  stoical,  solemn-looking  people,  who  apparently 
make  a  point  of  concealing  their  feelings,  but  I  think 
they  were  interested  as  I  spoke  to  them.  After  I  sat 
down  Lucy  Winney  got  up  and  told  the  people  in 
Wyandot  what  I  had  been  saying,  and  I  think  she 
must  have  enlarged  on  it  a  good  bit.  We  had  prayer 
in  Wyandot  from  a  rough  looking  Indian,  and  one 
or  two  hymns  were  afterwards  sung  in  that  language. 
There  were  some  very  fine  looking  Indian  women 
present.  They  wrap  themselves  in  brilliant  plaid 
shawls,  which  suit  their  dark  complexions  admirably. 
The  business  of  the  meeting  consisted  chiefly  in  long 
reports  from  each  of  the  five  or  six  congregations  that 
send  their  representatives  to  it,  and  the  consideration 
of  various  applications  for  membership,  and  the  In- 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  219 

dians  evidently  took  an  intelligent  interest  in  all  that 
went  on."^^ 

Just  at  the  beginning  of  the  next  period  the  work 
suffered  an  irreparable  loss  in  the  death  of  Dr.  James 
E.  Rhoads.  The  Associated  Committee  at  its  annual 
meeting  in  1895  set  forth  the  seriousness  of  this  blow 
in  the  following  minute :  "  We  meet  this  year  under  a 
feeling  of  the  great,  loss  which  we  and  the  work  of 
the  Associated  Executive  Committee  have  sustained 
in  the  sudden  death  of  our  dear  friend,  Dr.  James  E. 
Rhoads.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Committee  during 
the  26  years  of  its  existence;  and  for  many  years  was 
its  presiding  officer.  He  had  a  knowledge  of  the  work 
amongst  the  Indians  and  of  the  workers  in  the  field 
possessed  by  no  other  of  the  members  of  the  Com- 
mittee. His  broad  Christian  charity  and  devotion  to 
the  cause,  added  to  an  unusually  sympathetic  nature, 
brought  him  into  close  and  loving  relations  with  the 
individual  missionaries  and  made  him  a  great  support 
and  help  to  them  in  their  work.  We  ask  the  continued 
aid  and  sympathy  of  Friends  everywhere,  that  the  im- 
portant interest  committed  to  us  may  be  successfully 
carried  on,  and  crave  that  the  blessing  of  our  Heavenly 
Father  may  rest  upon  it."^^ 

In  1894  the  Associated  Executive  Committee  of 
Friends  on  Indian  Affairs  had  been  in  existence  25 
years  and  from  the  viewpoint  of  the  present  (1917)' 
that  year  was  just  about  the  mid-point  of  its  history. 

18  H.  S,  Newman,  MS.  Narrative  of  Sojourn  Among  the  In- 
dians, p.  7.  For  account  of  H.  S.  and  M,  A.  Newman's  experi- 
ences in  the  Indian  country  see  also  The  Friend  (London),  30 
(1890)  :  41-42,  65-67,  88-89.  Also  Friends'  Quarterly  Examiner, 
25   (1891)  :  553-566. 

10  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1893,  p.  16. 


220  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  sub-period  of  a  decade  following  1894  is  that  cov- 
ered by  the  administration  of  George  N.  and  L.  Ella 
Hartley  as  Superintendents.  Perhaps  the  most  out- 
standing development  during  this  time  was  the  estab- 
lishment of  two  new  mission  stations,  one  among  the 
Otoes  and  one  among  the  Big  Jim  band  of  Absentee 
Shawnees. 

The  Otoe  Indians  were  settled  in  close  proximity 
to  the  lowas  and  there  was  much  social  intercourse 
between  the  two  tribes.  As  a  result  of  this  the  Friends 
who  were  laboring  among  the  lowas  formed  a  desire 
to  reach  the  neighboring  Otoes.  Women  Friends  of 
Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  became  especially  interested 
in  this  pioneer  work  and  they  formed  an  Indian  Aid 
Society  in  1897  which  was  in  existence  about  five 
years  and  was  largely  instrumental,  under  the  over- 
sight of  the  Associated  Committee,  in  founding  and 
building  up  the  mission  among  the  Otoes.  As  a  result 
of  these  efforts  D.  Amos  Outland  and  his  wife  Rhoda 
M.  Outland  arrived  among  the  Otoes  in  the  spring  of 
1898  and  with  the  aid  of  Superintendent  George  N. 
Hartley  began  the  new  work.  The  mission  buildings 
were  erected  on  a  tract  of  40  acres  allotted  by  the  gov- 
ernment for  the  purpose,  a  short  distance  from  the 
government  school. 

The  early  progress  and  the  type  of  the  work  among 
the  Otoes  may  be  judged  from  the  following  excerpt 
from  a  report  made  by  D.  A.  and  Rhoda  M.  Outland 
in  1899,  after  they  had  been  in  the  field  about  a  year 
and  a  half:  "We  have  known  the  blessing  of  God  on 
us,  and  our  labor  here,  manifested  in  His  immediate 
care  of  us,  and,  in  His  giving  us  greater  influence  with 
the  Otoe  Indians.     We  have  kept  up  our   Sabbath 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  221 

school  and  other  services  in  the  Government  school, 
with  the  encouragement  of  government  officials,  and 
have  spent  a  great  part  of  the  remaining  time  with  the 
older  Indians,  in  their  homes  and  camps,  visiting  the 
sick,  burying  the  dead,  and,  in  everything  endeavoring 
to  show  them  a  better  way.  We  receive  from  them 
many  expressions  of  tenderness  and  appreciation  of 
us  and  our  work  with  them. 

"While  visiting  famiUes  yesterday,  I  called  on  an 
aged  man,  who  was  sick.  When  I  entered  the  room, 
he  gave  me  one  hand  and  raised  the  other,  and  began 
praying.  Understanding  his  wish,  I  knelt  beside  him 
and  he  prayed  at  length.  When  he  mentioned  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ  his  voice  broke,  and,  for  the 
moment  failed,  overcome  by  emotion.  After  a  time 
of  pleasant  talk,  I  left  him  to  find  another,  who  can 
speak  and  read  EngHsh.  He  too  had  a  lingering  fever. 
I  found  his  Bible  on  his  bed,  and  he  was  eager  to  talk 
of  Jesus."2o 

So  the  work  among  the  Otoes  was  established  and 
along  lines  as  described  above  it  developed.  Early 
in  1902  the  school  buildings  of  the  government  were 
burned  and  this  caused  some  discouragement  to  the 
missionaries  on  account  of  the  importance  of  the  serv- 
ices held  with  the  school  children.  But  the  buildings 
were  soon  rebuilt  and  the  mission  work  continued  to 
develop  as  before. 

The  mission  among  the  Big  Jim  band  of  Absentee 
Shawnees  was  established  in  1897  by  the  Maine 
Branch  of  the  Women's  National  Indian  Association. 
Buildings  were  erected,  an  orchard  planted  and  sev- 
eral acres  of  land  put  under  cultivation.     The  above 

20  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1899,  p.  30. 


222  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

named  organization  was  for  pioneer  work  only  and 
its  policy  was  to  transfer  its  established  stations,  as 
occasion  offered,  to  religious  organizations  already  at 
work  in  the  vicinity.  As  the  station  at  Big  Jim  was 
only  twenty  miles  south  of  the  Friends'  mission  and 
superintendency  at  Shawnee,  and  as  various  Friends, 
members  of  the  Maine  Branch,  had  been  directly 
charged  with  planting  and  caring  for  the  Big  Jim  mis- 
sion, it  was  decided  to  offer  this  station  to  the  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee.  This  was  done  in  1898 
and  after  careful  consideration  the  Committee  took 
charge  the  following  year.  The  devoted  workers, 
Philander  and  Caroline  Blackledge  were  for  a  time  in 
charge  of  this  mission.  They  were  followed  by  John 
F.  and  Mary  Mardock,  veteran  workers  who  had  done 
much  pioneer  work  among  various  tribes.  However, 
although  a  great  deal  of  faithful  labor  was  expended, 
not  much  outward  result  could  be  seen  by  1904,  the 
close  of  the  period  under  review.  Chief  Big  Jim  and 
other  prominent  men  in  the  band  were  opposed  to 
Christianity  and  were  able  for  the  time  to  thwart 
largely  the  efforts  of  the  missionaries.  It  was  a  time 
of  seed  sowing  and  long  waiting  for  the  harvest.^^ 

The  missions  among  the  Kickapoos  and  lowas  es- 
tablished earlier  but  still  to  be  classed  as  newer  sta- 
tions made  slow  but  steady  progress.  A  large  element 
among  the  Kickapoos  was  still  very  conservative  and 
much  opposed  to  Christianity  and  the  white  man's 
ways.  The  lowas  were  restless  and  unsettled,  dis- 
satisfied with  the  lands  allotted  to  them,  and  fond  of 
visiting  other  nearby  Indians. 

21  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1892,  p.  23;  1899,  p.  18; 
1904,  p.  29. 


THE   OKLAHOMA    MISSIONS.  223 

Friends  of  Baltimore  Monthly  Meeting  continued 
their  support  of  the  work  among  the  lowas  and  New 
England  Friends  continued  to  help  the  Kickapoo  sta- 
tion. In  the  latter  case  however  the  responsibihty 
for  financial  support  was  transferred  in  1902  from 
the  Women's  Foreign  Missionary  Society  to  the  Yearly 
Meeting's  Committee  on  Western  Indians. 

The  continued  interest  in  the  Indian  work  so  long 
shown  by  Friends  across  the  sea  was  witnessed  in  this 
period  by  the  visit  of  Harriet  Green,  an  English 
Friend,  to  the  Oklahoma  missions.  She  was  much 
impressed  with  the  evident  results  among  the  Indians 
of  the  evangelizing  message  During  a  visit  at  Modoc 
station  she  dined  with  Hiram  and  Ellen  Blackfish, 
Christian  Indians.  In  reporting  this  visit  to  Friends 
in  England  she  related  the  following  incident :  "  I  told 
Hiram  I  should  like  to  welcome  him  to  London  Yearly 
Meeting,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the  grand  ring  of 
his  voice  or  his  dignified  manner  as  he  said,  '  If  I 
came,  I  should  tell  the  Friends,  I  am  saved  of  the 
Lord,  saved  by  the  same  grace  as  you  are.' "  This  in- 
cident illustrates  a  very  general  impression  made  upon 
visiting  Friends  that  the  Indians  had  a  real  under- 
standing of  the  fundamental  imphcations  of  the  Gospel 
message. ^^ 

On  the  whole  the  work  was  somewhat  less  encour- 
aging in  this  period.  The  conditions  of  Indian  life 
were  fast  changing.  The  presence  of  many  white 
settlers  seemed  to  lessen  in  some  ways  the  impact  of 
the  evangelizing  message.  There  was  less  need  for 
Friends'  schools  as  the  government  and  public  schools 
became  more  numerous  and  more  efficient. 

22  The  Friend,  London,  37  (1897)  :  168. 


224  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

In  1902  Superintendent  Hartley  reported  as  fol- 
lows :  "  Within  the  past  twelve  months,  there  has  been 
drawn  into  this  new  country,  by  the  opening  up  of 
new  lands,  a  mixed  multitude  of  people,  tens  of  thou- 
sands in  number,  of  almost  very  nationality  on  the 
face  of  the  earth."  Again  just  at  the  close  of  the 
period,  in  1904,  he  reported  along  similar  lines,  re- 
viewing the  changes  of  the  preceding  decade :  "  On 
first  coming  into  this  locality  the  nearest  railroad  sta- 
tion was  fifty  miles  distant,  and  these  Indians  were 
comparatively  isolated;  but  now  the  whistle  of  the 
trains  may  be  heard  on  every  hand,  and  white  people, 
side  by  side  with  the  Indians,  are  transforming  the 
broad  prairies  into  fertile  fields  of  grain,  and  orchards 
of  fruit.  The  huts  and  cabins  are  being  rapidly  ex- 
changed for  commodious  dwellings,  and  the  promise 
of  financial  prosperity  seems  evident. 

"  The  stimulus  to  activity  thus  given,  is  bearing  fruit 
among  the  Indian  population,  in  the  way  of  self-sup- 
port, as  more  and  more  they  are  beginning  to  cultivate 
their  own  farms  instead  of  renting  them. 

"  Eventually  the  change  that  is  now  taking  place 
must  become  a  blessing  to  the  natives,  after  the 
rougher  classes  have  pushed  on  to  the  frontier  coun- 
tries and  left  their  places  to  be  filled  by  honest  indus- 
trious settlers. "^^ 

The  great  development  in  the  central  organization 
of  the  mission  work  during  this  period  was  the  rela- 
tion established  between  the  Associated  Committee 
and  the  Five  Years'  Meeting.  Edward  M.  Wistar,  for 
many  years  the  faithful  chairman  of  the  Associated 
Committee,  read  a  paper  on  the  Indian  work  before 

23  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1902,  p.  24;  1904,  p.  22, 


BIRDIE   SPOON    AND   FAMILY 


AT   HOME"   TO  THE   FRIENDS'    MISSIONARIES     GEORGE    N.   AND   L.    ELLA 

HARTLEY, 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  225 

the  Five  Years'  Meeting  in  1902  and  there  followed  a 
discussion  participated  in  by  Rachel  Kirk,  Francis  W. 
Thomas,  Allen  Jay,  Carolena  M.  Wood  and  others. 
As  a  result  the  Five  Years'  Meeting  adopted  a  series 
of  four  resolutions  endorsing  the  Indian  mission  work 
as  worthy  of  the  continued  and  increased  support  of 
the  Yearly  Meetings  and  appointing  the  Associated 
Committee  as  its  "  official  representative  in  this  field." 
The  Committee  was  requested  to  continue  its  annual 
reports  to  the  several  bodies  represented  in  it  and  to 
send  a  full  report  to  each  Five  Years'  Meeting.^* 

During  the  decade  1 904-1 91 4  William  Perry  Ha- 
worth  and  his  wife  Abigail  C.  Haworth  occupied  the 
mission  station  at  Shawnee  and  were  superintendents 
of  the  entire  system  of  missions. 

One  of  the  changes  that  culminated  in  this  period 
was  the  elimination  of  the  Indian  schools  maintained 
by  Friends.  In  1898  there  were  two  Friends'  board- 
ing schools,  at  Kickapoo  and  Skiatook  (Hillside) 
respectively,  besides  seven  day  schools.  Gradually, 
as  the  government  and  public  schools  became  more 
numerous  and  more  efficient,  these  private  schools 
closed  their  doors  until  that  phase  of  the  pioneer  work 
came  to  an  end.  The  following  extract  from  the  re- 
port of  the  Superintendents  in  1908  explains  the  new 
conditions  that  had  arisen  and  also  points  out  the  value 
of  the  Friends'  schools  in  the  past :  "  With  the  chang- 
ing events,  circumstances  change,  surrounding  many 

24  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1903,  pp.  26-27.  Minutes 
of  Five  Years'  Meeting,  1902,  pp.  30,  152-153,  1 26-141.  The 
Five  Years'  Meeting  is  the  central  representative  body  of 
Friends  in  America  and  was  organized  in  1902.  It  includes  all 
of  the  Orthodox  Yearly  Meetings  except  Philadelphia  and  Ohio 
and  some  small  conservative  bodies. 


226  FRIENDS   AND   THE    INDIANS. 

of  our  mission  stations.  With  the  coming  of  state- 
hood (in  1907)  is  coming  the  provision  for  free 
schools,  open  ahke  to  both  Indians  and  whites.  This, 
together  with  the  continued  provision  of  our  govern- 
ment for  the  education  of  Indian  children,  seems 
largely  to  supersede  any  effort  we  as  a  religious  or- 
ganization are  prepared  to  make  for  the  education  of 
Indian  children.  While  we  might  doubt  the  value  or 
efficiency  of  such  schools,  when  compared  with  those 
under  the  immediate  religious  care  of  the  Church,  yet 
they  are  here,  and  are  offering  opportunities  to  the 
masses  of  Indian  children,  such  as  the  Church  would 
be  largely  unable  to  do.  The  conditions  above  re- 
ferred to  have  occasioned  the  closing  of  our  school  so 
long  maintained  at  Hillside,  it  being  the  last  school 
under  the  control  of  your  Committee.  Many  of  the 
business  men,  both  mixed  bloods  and  whites,  in  the 
counties  adjoining  this  school,  have  received  their  in- 
spiration and  training  here,  w^hich  probably  would 
have  been  wholly  lacking  but  for  the  opportunities 
this  school  afforded  them."'^ 

Almost  at  the  same  time  that  the  school  system  came 
to  an  end,  the  purely  religious  work  of  the  Associated 
Committee  was  further  extended  by  the  addition  of  a 
station  among  the  Osage  Indians.  Friends  had  been 
much  interested  in  these  Indians  from  the  time  of 
Grant's  Peace  Policy,  and  Laban  J.  ]\Iiles  who  had 
been  their  Agent  for  some  years  prior  to  1885  ^^'^^ 
recalled  again  to  that  service  in  1890  at  the  request  of 
the  Indians.  At  this  time,  too,  Thomas  H.  Stanley, 
of  Kansas,  a  veteran  in  the  Indian  work,  visited  the 
Osages  and  helped  to  awaken  again  the  interest  of 

25  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1908,  p.  26. 


THE  OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  227 

Friends  in  them.  In  the  following  years  this  interest 
was  maintained  and  in  1907  Isaac  T.  Gibson,  of  Okla- 
homa, a  former  Agent  of  the  Osages,  wrote  a  letter 
informing  Friends  of  the  open  door  for  missionary 
effort  among  these  Indians.  As  a  result  Edward  M. 
Wistar,  William  P.  Haworth  and  Isaac  T.  Gibson 
visited  the  Osages  early  in  1908  and  in  the  fall  of  that 
year  a  mission  station  was  established  at  Hominy  in 
charge  of  Daniel  A.  Williams  and  his  wife  Hattie  E. 
Williams.  About  five  hundred  Indians  had  their 
homes  adjacent  to  the  town  of  Hominy,  with  no  op- 
portunity for  religious  instruction  save  for  the  occa- 
sional visit  of  a  Catholic  priest. 

The  work  of  Friends  among  these  Indians  has  de- 
veloped largely  along  the  lines  of  family  visitations 
and  of  meeting  and  speaking  to  the  Indians  in  their 
own  gatherings.  No  meeting  house  has  been  built  but 
the  confidence  of  a  large  number  of  the  Indians  has 
been  gained  and  a  considerable  religious  influence 
exerted  among  them.  This  is  one  of  the  richest  of  the 
Indian  tribes  and  the  money  and  lands  received  from 
the  government  have  brought  with  them  terrible  temp- 
tations to  idleness  and  vice.  The  opportunity  for  re- 
ligious service  is  widening  and  the  need  is  great.^® 

As  the  work  was  thus  being  extended  into  new  and 
needy  fields  it  was  becoming  less  extensive  in  some  of 
the  older  fields.  The  changing  conditions  of  Indian 
life  so  evident  during  the  administration  of  George 
and  Ella  Hartley  (1894-1904)  became  even  more 
marked  in  the  subsequent  decade.     As  a  consequence 

26  The  dates  given  in  the  text  are  sufficient  guide  to  the  source 
materials  in  the  annual  printed  reports  of  the  Associated  Com- 
mittee, which  are  usually  reprinted  in  the  Minutes  of  Indiana 
and  Western  Yearly  Meetings. 


228  FRIENDS   AND  THE   INDIANS. 

there  was  a  gradual  withdrawal  during  both  periods 
from  active  missionary  work  at  various  points.  This 
shifting  of  effort  really  dates  from  the  beginning  of 
the  missionary  work  but  the  process  has  become  more 
marked  as  the  changes  in  Indian  life  have  been  ac- 
celerated. The  early  work  of  Asa  and  Emeline  Tuttle 
among  the  Quapaws  was  gradually  given  up  as  a  more 
open  field  of  service  appeared  among  the  Modocs  and 
Ottawas.  Similarly  in  the  year  1 896-1 897  five  sub- 
ordinate stations  passed  from  the  partial  care  of  the 
Associated  Committee  to  the  entire  charge  of  Kansas 
Yearly  Meeting. 

This  process  went  on  rapidly  especially  at  the  east- 
ern stations  as  the  tide  of  white  population  rose.  The 
support  of  a  missionary  at  Sycamore  was  discontinued 
about  1909.  The  Indian  work  at  Hillside  grew  less 
and  less  after  1905  and  that  station  was  discontinued 
in  1913.  The  work  at  Ottawa  and  Modoc,  two  of  the 
strongest  stations  at  an  earlier  time,  later  became 
smaller  on  account  of  the  scattering  of  the  Indians 
and  the  coming  of  white  people.  As  a  result  the  two 
stations  were  placed  under  one  missionary  during  the 
year  1913-1914  and  in  191 5  the  support  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Committee  was  withdrawn  from  them  alto- 
gether. 

The  withdrawals  thus  far  mentioned  were  all  from 
stations  in  the  eastern  mission  district.  The  closing 
of  the  Iowa  station  for  a  period  of  two  years  was 
from  other  causes.  About  1910  the  Associated  Com- 
mittee entered  into  cordial  relations  with  the  Home 
Missions  Council,  a  body  made  up  of  representatives 
from  various  evangelical  Christian  churches  in  Amer- 
ica.   One  of  the  aims  of  this  Council  is  to  prevent  any 


FRIENDS'    MODOC    MEETING-HOUSE 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  229 

overlapping  of  home  missionan'  effort.  It  has  been 
found  impossible  however  to  get  the  cooperation  of 
some  of  the  smaller  and  more  sectarian  bodies.  As  a 
result  a  representative  of  such  a  body,  emphasizing 
the  need  of  water  baptism  and  certain  other  outward 
ordinances,  waged  a  sectarian  war  against  the  Friends' 
missionaries  among  the  lowas  and  succeeded  in  al- 
ienating nearly  the  whole  band  of  Indians  from  the 
influence  of  Friends.  The  Iowa  Indians  had  received 
great  help  spiritually  and  temporally  from  Friends 
and  for  some  years  the  mission  establishment  among 
them  had  been  one  of  the  most  promising.  While  the 
closing  of  such  a  station  was  most  discouraging  yet  it 
may  perhaps  be  counted  as  one  of  the  inevitable  re- 
sults of  the  incoming  white  population.  Perhaps  the 
Indian  too  must  suffer  from  the  pett}-  sectarian  wars 
that  have  brought  religious  devastation  to  many  a 
white  settlement  in  the  pioneer  stage. 

As  Friends  did  not  feel  drawn  to  enter  into  a  pro- 
tracted dispute  with  the  representative  of  another 
religious  denomination  and  as  a  great  majority  of  the 
Indians  seemed  thoroughly  alienated,  the  Iowa  mis- 
sion was  closed  in  191 5.  Two  years  later,  however, 
at  the  request  of  a  considerable  number  of  Indians,  in- 
cluding Chief  Dave  Tohee,  who  always  remained  loyal 
to  Friends,  the  mission  was  reopened  under  the  care 
of  the  veteran  workers  John  F,  and  Marj-  Mardock 
and  Lina  B.  Lunt. 

Since  1914  Clark  and  Elma  T.  Brown  have  been 
situated  at  the  Shawnee  Mission  and  are  the  Superin- 
tendents of  the  entire  system  of  Friends'  missions  in 
Oklahoma.  The  system  is  not  so  extensive  as  it  once 
was  and  the  conditions  are  vastly  changed.     There 

16 


230  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

are  only  seven  regular  mission  stations  where  a  few 
years  ago  there  were  eleven,  and  the  total  Indian  mem- 
bership in  the  organized  Friends'  meetings  has  de- 
creased in  still  greater  proportion.  Many  of  the  older 
leaders  and  supporters^^  of  the  work  have  passed  away 
and  some  of  the  Yearly  Meetings  have  diminished  or 
withdrawn  their  support  of  the  work.  At  the  same 
time  there  has  been  some  accession  of  help  from 
younger  Friends  and  other  Yearly  Meetings. 

Looking  back  over  the  whole  period  it  is  clear  that 
the  recent  changes  in  the  work  are  due  wholly  to  the 
changed  conditions  of  Indian  life.  In  the  beginning 
the  Indians  lived  in  allotted  districts  and  were  pre- 
vented by  strict  government  supervision  from  scat- 
tering. Moreover  at  this  time  the  presence  of  any 
considerable  white  population  among  the  Indians  was 
unknown.  During  the  period  of  Grant's  Peace  Policy 
Friends  had  a  paramount  influence  and  an  unprece- 
dented opportunity  with  various  tribes  officially  under 
their  charge.  In  many  places  Friends  maintained  the 
only  schools  in  the  vicinity  and  thus  found  access  to 
the  hearts  and  homes  of  the  Indians  through  the  work 
for  the  Indian  children.  Many  of  the  bands  and  tribes 
had  suffered  untold  misery  in  the  Indian  wars  and  in 
the  exigencies  of  their  removal  to  the  Territory.  To 
these  Indians  Friends  brought  the  consolations  and 
promises  of  the  Gospel  and  they  heard  the  message 

27  Allen  Jay,  for  many  years  chairman  of  the  Indian  Committee 
of  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  and  a  valued  member  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Committee,  died  in  1910.  T.  Wistar  Brown,  of  Phila- 
delphia, one  of  the  most  generous  supporters  and  wisest  ad- 
visers of  the  Committee,  died  in  1916.  A  provision  made  before 
his  death  allows  further  support  to  the  work  as  long  as  it  is 
continued  under  the  auspices  of  the  Associated  Committee  as  at 
present  constituted. 


THE   OKLAHOMA   MISSIONS.  231 

gladly.  The  result  was  a  tidal  wave  of  evangelistic 
effort  and  an  ingathering  of  converts,  comparable,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Modocs,  to  the  finest  successes  of 
modern  missionary  effort. 

All  of  the  fundamental  conditions  of  this  early 
success  passed  gradually  away  with  the  change  of  gov- 
ernmental policy  and  the  influx  of  white  population. 
Friends  lost  their  paramount  influence  as  the  agencies 
passed  one  by  one  from  their  control.  Friends'  schools 
were  closed  as  the  public  school  system  became  estab- 
lished.^^ The  Indians  scattered  in  many  sections  as 
the  strict  government  supervision  was  relaxed.  The 
initial  impact  of  the  early  evangelizing  movement 
among  a  pagan  people  lessened  with  the  influx  of 
white  settlers,  and  the  missions  have  gradually  settled 
into  the  slower  steadier  effort  to  win  and  hold  a  people 
influenced  by  the  vices  as  well  as  the  virtues  of  a  new 
civilization. 

Jonathan  M.  Steere  and  Walter  Smedley,  for  many 
years  valued  members  and  officers  of  the  Associated 
Committee,  visited  the  mission  field  in  1906,  and  sum- 
marized their  impressions  of  the  modem  problem  in 
the  following  statement :  "  We  were  fully  convinced 
that  Friends  are  doing  a  splendid  piece  of  work  and 
that  while  it  may  from  time  to  time  be  best  to  relin- 
quish it  in  certain  places,  the  work  as  a  whole  should 
not  be  allowed  to  flag;  but  rather  the  hands  of  those 
who  are  directly  engaged  in  it  should  be  strengthened, 
new  fields  of  effort  be  entered  upon  as  occasion  may 
arise  and  the  whole  work  be  given  the  hearty  and  cor- 

28  It  should  be  noticed  however  that  at  the  present  time  the 
Friends'  missionaries  at  Wyandotte,  Shawnee,  and  Otoe  have 
good  opportunity  to  influence  the  Indian  children  in  the  gov- 
ernment schools  at  those  places. 


232  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

dial  support,  both  financially  and  sympathetically,  of 
Friends  in  all  our  Yearly  Meetings.  It  seemed  to  us 
that  the  work  was  one  peculiarly  laid  upon  Friends  to 
do.  The  mission  stations  are  points  of  light  and  of 
healthy  influence,  and  we  have  often  talked  together 
of  how  serious  it  would  be  to  the  communities  should 
they  be  abandoned.  It  is  perhaps  easier  to  explain 
why  we  were  impressed  so  much  by  what  we  saw  and 
heard  when  it  is  considered  that  in  some  places  where 
our  missions  are  established  they  are  the  only  centers 
of  religious  influence  of  any  kind  for  perhaps  a  radius 
of  ten  or  fifteen  miles,  and  were  these  influences  which 
go  out  from  the  little  mission  centers  eliminated  from 
the  life  of  the  prairie,  it  would  seem  that  incalculable 
loss  would  be  the  result."^* 

Such  is  the  situation  and  such  the  work  of  the  Okla- 
homa missions  at  the  present  time.  The  pioneer  con- 
ditions are  gone  or  going.  The  high  tide  of  the  first 
evangelizing  effort  is  passed.  The  present  situation 
calls  for  steady,  earnest,  self-sacrificing  labor  unmind- 
ful of  immediate  rewards  or  successes.  It  is  a  critical 
time  for  the  Indian  and  a  testing  time  for  the  Quaker 
missionary  spirit. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   NOTE. 

The  chief  source  for  the  above  chapter  is  Associated 
Executive  Committee  Minutes  as  listed,  p.  199,  above,  and 
used  in  this  chapter  as  contained  in  Indiana  Yearly  Meet- 
ing printed  Minutes, 

The  American  Friend,  Philadelphia,  contains  much  valu- 
able material.  This  weekly  paper,  edited  by  Rufus  M. 
Jones,  succeeded  in  1894  the  Friends'  Review,  Philadel- 
phia, and  the  Christian  Worker,  Chicago. 

29  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1908,  p.  34. 


THE   OKLAHOMA    MISSIONS.  233 

The  Friend,  London,  and  The  British  Friend  have  occa- 
sional articles,  chiefly  dealing  with  the  travels  of  Eng- 
lish Friends  among  the  American  Indians. 

Hubbard,  Jeremiah.  Forty  Years  Among  the  Indians. 
Miami,  Okla.,  1913.  This  book  is  an  enlargement  of  the 
same  author's  Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting,  Carthage, 
Mo.,  1913. 

Newman,  Henry  Stanley.  Narrative  of  Sojourn 
Among  the  Indians. 

A  valuable  manuscript  written  by  H.  S.  Newman  at 
the  request  of  Mary  S.  Kimber,  now  deposited  in  the 
Library  of  Haverford  College. 


CHAPTER   X. 

MANY  WORKS  IN  MANY  FIELDS. 

Most  of  the  movements  and  developments  in  the 
work  of  Friends  for  the  Indians  have  been  described. 
There  remain  however  some  important  phases  of  the 
story  not  told  in  the  earlier  chapters. 

White's   Institutes,   Indiana  and   Iowa. 

Josiah  White,  a  Friend  of  Philadelphia,  left  $40,000 
by  will  in  1850  to  establish  two  schools,  one  in  In- 
diana and  one  in  Iowa,  "  for  poor  children,  white, 
colored  and  Indian,  .  .  .  such  as  have  not  the  means 
to  procure  schooling,  board  and  clothing  for  them- 
selves."^ 

The  two  institutions  were  established  in  due  time, 
one  near  Salem,  Iowa,  and  the  other  near  Wabash,, 
Indiana.  Both  were  embarrassed  by  a  lack  of  financial 
resources  and  were  not  largely  successful  during  their 
early  years  in  carrying  out  the  design  of  the  founder. 
About  1883  a  movement  for  the  extension  of  Indian 
education  developed  that  practically  changed  the  two 
White's  Institutes  into  Indian  schools  for  a  short 
period  of  years. 

At  this  time  the  Associated  Executive  Committee 
of  Friends  on  Indian  Affairs  was  seriously  considering 
the  advisability  of  establishing  an  industrial  school  for 
Indian  children  in  or  near  the  Indian  Territory.    The 

^Friends'  Review,  4  (1850) :  174. 

234 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  235 

government  however  decided  to  provide  such  a  school 
and  also  to  support  a  number  of  Indian  children  in 
other  schools  that  mig<ht  be  selected  in  various  states. 

Friends  saw  in  this  an  opening  for  further  service 
to  'the  Indians  and  after  securing  the  consent  of  In- 
diana Yearly  Meeting  it  was  decided  to  open  the  doors 
of  White's  Institute  at  Wabash  to  such  Indian  chil- 
dren as  the  government  might  see  fit  to  send.  As  a 
result  twenty-seven  Indian  children  selected  by  Asa 
and  Emeline  Tuttle  from  various  tribes  in  the  In- 
dian Territory  were  received  into  the  Institute  early 
in  1883.  As  this  number  of  pupils  overtaxed  the  ac- 
commodations of  the  Institute  the  Associated  Ex- 
ecutive Committee  collected  $3,100  for  the  building  of 
a  Boys'  Home  and  a  little  later  $6,700  to  apply  on  a 
Girls'  Home.^ 

This  was  the  beginning  of  a  work  that  was  carried 
on  for  about  a  decade  with  great  success.  As  a  rule 
about  half  of  each  week-day  was  devoted  to  school 
work  proper  and  the  other  half  to  various  industrial 
exercises  suited  to  boys  and  girls  respectively.  The 
age  of  the  Indian  pupils  usually  varied  from  about 
twelve  to  eighteen  years. 

The  following  excerpt  from  a  report  of  1885  by 
Benjamin  S.  Coppock,  then  at  the  head  of  the  school 
work  in  the  Institute,  indicates  the  type  of  work  done 
in  and  out  of  school  by  the  boys  and  girls :  "  There 
has  been  a  general  spirit  of  contentment  among  the 
pupils,  and  they  have  easily  adapted  themselves  to 
the  methods  of  work,  manners  and  habits  of  life  at 
the  Institute.     We  find  that  they  yield  to  authority, 

2  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1882,  p.  51;  same,  1883,  pp. 
19,  53;  same,  1884,  pp.  23,  26. 


236  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

to  the  influence  of  others,  and  to  rehgious  motives 
with  readiness.  They  would  make  good  citizens  in  a 
good  community,  or  bad  citizens  in  a  drunken,  wicked 
neighborhood.  With  the  general  knowledge  of  farm- 
ing and  house-keeping  they  now  have,  many  of  them 
would  make  desirable  help  in  good  farmers'  families, 
and  with  proper  surroundings  and  encouragement  they 
will  develope  into  useful  men  and  women.  They  need 
to  have  developed  in  them  a  love  of  home,  a  love  of 
property,  a  love  of  life,  and  respect  for  woman.  They 
show  powers  of  perseverance  and  of  endurance  in 
labor.  During  the  winter  the  chores  about  so  large  a 
home  and  farm  as  we  have  here  involve  a  good  deal  of 
work.  The  boys  are  taught  in  sections  of  four  each, 
and  rotate  through  seven  divisions  of  work,  changing 
every  two  weeks.  They  have  been  through  each  divi- 
sion several  times,  and  now  many  of  them  are  quite 
prompt  and  reliable.  During  the  farming  season  the 
boys  have  been  employed  in  all  the  various  operations 
of  a  large  stock-raising  farm,  with  field  crops  and  gar- 
dening in  addition,  so  that  they  now  prepare  to  take 
responsibility,  and  do  many  kinds  of  work.  Habits 
of  business  and  economy  have  been  instilled,  and  ef- 
forts made  to  give  them  an  appreciation  of  the  values 
of  time,  of  labor,  of  money,  and  of  clothing,  and  there 
is  nothing  in  which  they  have  taken  greater  interest 
or  made  better  progress  than  in  this  much-needed 
part  of  their  education.  Three  of  the  boys  are  now 
working  for  us  as  carpenters,  and,  under  direction, 
perform  as  much  work  daily  as  white  mechanics  would 
do.  The  girls  have  been  divided  into  seven  sections, 
and  are  trained  in  as  many  divisions  of  work,  which 
include  all  the  details  of  house-keeping.     They  have 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  237 

shown  earnestness,  and  in  several  departments  pro- 
ficiency. Several  of  them  have  learned  to  make  and 
bake  bread  and  pies,  to  cook  a  plain  meal,  to  care  for 
milk  and  cream,  and  to  make  butter.  Some  of  them 
can  cut  and  make  dresses ;  a  number  sew  by  hand  and 
with  a  machine.  They  have  some  knowledge  of  all 
the  details  of  laundry  work  and  general  house-keep- 
ing. In  school  they  equal  or  excel  white  children  in 
writing,  drawing,  geography,  history  and  in  reading 
as  far  as  the  Third  Reader.  In  advanced  reading  and 
Arithmetic  they  fall  behind.  I  think  their  strong 
points  are  observation,  imitation,  and  memory.  They 
are  weak  in  reasoning.  ... 

"We  have  daily  family  collection  and  school  col- 
lection, each  accompanied  with  reading  of  the  Bible, 
and  a  semi-weekly  study  of  the  Bible,  with  recital  of 
texts.  We  have  a  weekly  Bible  school  and  a  meeting. 
There  have  been  several  requests  from  children  for 
special  prayer  meetings.  A  considerable  number  have 
requested  prayer  for  themselves.  Several  have  taken 
part  in  the  meetings."^ 

Such  in  general  was  the  type  of  work  carried  on 
throughout  the  period.  The  religious  side  was 
strongly  emphasized  in  the  daily  routine  and  in  special 
evangelistic  meetings  occasionally  held.  There  were 
many  professed  conversions  to  Christianity  among  the 
Indian  children  and  many  of  them  exhibited  to  a  high 
degree  the  cardinal  Christian  virtues. 

Oliver  H.  Bales  and  his  wife  Martha  acted  as  Super- 
intendent and  Matron  respectively  throughout  the 
period.  Benjamin  S.  Coppock  was  Principal  of  the 
school  during  the  early  years  and  was  succeeded  in 

3  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1885,  pp.  20-21. 


238  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

the  later  period  by  Marcus  L.  Pearson.  In  1883 
there  were  27  Indian  children  and  24  whites  in  the 
Institute  but  the  number  of  white  children  dwindled 
to  almost  nothing  in  a  few  years  while  the  Indians 
numbered  from  60  to  75  during  most  of  the  period. 
For  these  children  the  government  paid  usually  about 
$167  each,  per  year,  although  this  amount  was  re- 
duced some  years.  The  Philadelphia  Indian  Aid  As- 
sociation also  supported  from  6  to  10  Indian  children 
at  about  the  same  rate  of  payment  for  several  years. 
The  Associated  Executive  Committee  aided  financially 
and  in  every  possible  way  throughout  the  period. 
Members  of  the  Committee  frequently  visited  the  In- 
stitute to  advise  and  encourage  those  in  charge. 

In  the  years  following  1890  many  Friends  connected 
with  the  Institute  and  with  the  Associated  Executive 
Committee  began  to  feel  that  the  basis  of  the  work 
was  not  satisfactory.  It  was  felt  to  be  unwise  to  carry 
on  a  work  under  denominational  auspices  by  the  use 
of  government  funds.  It  was  also  evident  that  a 
proper  standard  of  training  could  not  be  maintained 
with  the  amount  of  money  which  the  government  paid 
for  the  Indian  children.  As  a  result  most  of  the 
sixty-six  Indians  in  attendance  during  the  year  1894- 
1895  were  sent  back  to  their  homes  at  the  close  of  the 
school  year,  others  were  transferred  to  various  gov- 
ernment schools,  and  one  to  Earlham  College.  So  the 
work  of  White's  Indiana  Institute  as  a  distinctive  In- 
dian sdhool  came  to  a  close.* 

During  part  of  the  same  period  White's  Iowa  In- 
stitute was  also  used  as  a  training  school  for  Indian 
children.      Benjamin    and    Elizabeth   B.    Miles,    who 

*  Indiana  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1895,  p.  15. 


MANY   WORKS    IN    MANY   FIELDS.  239 

were  engaged  for  some  years  in  government  service 
among  the  Osages  of  the  Central  Superintendency, 
later  opened  a  Training  School  for  Indian  children  at 
West  Branch,  Iowa. 

As  the  number  of  Indian  pupils  increased  rapidly 
the  premises  of  White's  Iowa  Institute  were  leased 
and  the  school  was  continued  at  the  latter  place  from 
1883  to  1887.  In  the  latter  year  the  main  building  of 
the  Institute  was  destroyed  by  fire.  Effort  was  made 
to  provide  means  for  continuing  the  work  but  the 
government  promptly  withdrew  the  Indian  children 
and  Benjamin  and  Elizabeth  Miles  retired  from  the 
Indian  service  after  long  years  of  successful  labor. 

The  type  of  work  done  at  the  Iowa  Institute  was 
similar  to  that  done  in  Indiana.  The  students  devoted 
about  half  of  each  day  to  school  work  and  the  other 
half  to  industrial  pursuits.  The  boys  learned  to  work 
about  the  farm,  caring  for  stock  and  crops,  while  the 
girls  helped  with  the  house  work  and  learned  by  prac- 
tice the  ordinary  domestic  arts.  The  following  ex- 
tract from  the  report  of  1884  makes  clear  the  type  of 
life  and  training  experienced  by  the  pupils  in  the 
school. 

"  In  the  industrial  department  the  girls  whose  ages 
range  from  seven  to  eighteen  years  of  age  'have  done, 
under  caretakers,  a  large  part  of  the  work  in  the 
kitchen,  dining-room,  laundry,  dormitories  and  sweep- 
ing and  cleaning  the  different  apartments  of  the  house, 
and  have  assisted  in  making  clothing  for  both  boys 
and  girls.  During  the  last  two  months  two  full- 
blooded  Indian  girls  have  had  the  entire  charge  of 
yeast  and  breadmaking  for  both  officers  and  children. 
And  two   other  school  children,  one  an  Indian,  the 


240  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

Other  a  mixed  blood,  have  had  the  care  of  the  dairy 
work,  including  butter  making,  etc.  The  boys  and 
girls  do  the  milking  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen  cows. 
The  boys  have  assisted  in  all  the  variety  of  garden 
and  farm  work ;  besides,  they  are  learning  the  routine 
of  work  at  the  barn  and  care  of  stock.  The  children 
yield  readily  to  training  and  discipline  and  are  orderly 
in  their  deportment,  and  many  of  them  listen  with  at- 
tention and  we  believe  are  imbibing  the  simple  truths 
of  the  Gospel.  Some  have  made  an  open  profession 
and  are  entering  into  deeper  experience  of  religious 
knowledge,  and  are  living  prayerful  and  consistent 
lives  therewith."^ 

All  who  knew  the  school  at  the  time  remarked  about 
the  strong  religious  influences  there  and  the  splendid 
results  in  the  lives  of  the  pupils.  One  of  the  results 
was  that  a  large  number  of  the  Indian  children  made 
application  for  and  were  received  into  membership 
with  Friends. 

The  tuition  of  the  Indian  pupils  was  paid  by  the 
government  as  in  the  case  of  those  sent  to  the  In- 
diana Institute  and  as  the  amount  was  always  insuf- 
ficient aid  was  given  by  the  Associated  Executive 
Committee,  the  Women's  Indian  Aid  Society  of 
Philadelphia,  and  various  interested  Friends.  While 
the  Indian  work  at  the  Indiana  Institute  was  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Trustees  of  the  Institute,  and  the 
Associated  Executive  Committee,  that  in  Iowa  was 
undertaken  by  Benjamin  and  Elizabeth  Miles  on  their 
own  responsibility.  They  provided  the  plant  at  West 
Branch  with  their  own  funds  and  later  leased  the 
buildings  of  White's  Institute  in  their  own  names. 

6  Iowa  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1884,  p.  23. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  241 

The  splendid  results  are  to  be  credited  largely  to  their 
faith  and  devotion.® 

The  Eastern  Cherokees. 

Contemporary  with  the  Indian  work  at  the  two 
White's  Institutes  was  the  work  carried  on  by  Friends 
of  Western  Yearly  Meeting,  Indiana,  with  some  help 
from  North  Carolina  Friends  and  others,  for  the 
Eastern  Cherokees  living  in  the  southwestern  part  of 
North  Carolina.  When  the  main  body  of  Cherokees 
was  removed  to  the  Indian  Territory  (i  838-1 839)  a 
considerable  number  of  the  Eastern  Cherokees  re- 
fused to  leave  their  old  home.  Seeking  the  almost 
impenetrable  fastnesses  of  their  native  mountains  they 
defied  pursuit  and  finally  received  permission  from  the 
government  to  remain. 

About  1880  some  Friends  residing  at  Maryville, 
Tennessee,  became  interested  in  these  Indians  and 
brought  their  needs  to  the  attention  of  Friends  of 
North  Carolina  and  Western  Yearly  Meetings.  As  a 
result  Barnabas  C.  Hobbs,  of  Indiana,  was  sent  by 
Friends  of  Western  Yearly  Meeting  to  investigate 
the  situation  of  these  Indians.  He  conferred  with  Dr. 
I.  D.  Garner  and  others  of  Maryville,  Tennessee, 
visited  and  met  in  council  the  Indians  and  at  Wash- 
ington had  audience  with  President  Garfield  and  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior.  The  outcome  was  that 
Friends  entered  into  an  arrangement  with  the  govern- 
ment to  open  schools  among  the  Eastern  Cherokees. 

6  In  compiling  the  above,  use  has  been  made  of  the  account 
in  L.  T.  Jones,  The  Quakers  in  Iowa,  pp.  224-226 ;  also  of  a  M^S. 
book  of  memoirs  written  by  Elizabeth  Miles  and  loaned  to  the 
author  by  her  daughter  Mary  E,  Morrison. 


242  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

The  support  of  the  work  was  to  come  from  certain 
funds  held  by  the  government  for  these  Indians  and 
other  money  that  Congress  might  appropriate,  sup- 
plemented by  such  funds  as  Friends  might  feel  led 
to  give  to  aid  in  the  successful  prosecution  of  the 
workJ 

In  accordance  with  this  plan  Thomas  C.  Brown  and 
wife  were  engaged  to  take  general  charge  of  the  work 
and  they  arrived  in  the  field  in  the  latter  part  of  Octo- 
ber, 1 88 1.  Four  day  schools  had  already  been  opened 
among  the  Indians  and  a  fifth  was  added  early  in  the 
winter.  Aside  from  acting  as  general  superintendent 
of  the  schools  Thomas  C.  Brown  engaged  in  religious 
work  among  the  Indians,  holding  meetings  and  or- 
ganizing Bible  Schools  in  various  places. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  work  two  Indian  children 
who  wished  to  become  teachers  and  therefore  needed 
higher  training  than  that  offered  in  the  day  schools 
were  taken  to  a  Normal  School  under  Friends'  care 
at  Maryville,  Tennessee.  In  connection  with  this  it 
was  clearly  seen  that  one  higher  school  should  be  pro- 
vided among  the  Indians. 

The  opportunity  to  meet  this  need  came  in  1883 
when  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  offered 
to  support  twenty  Indian  girls  in  such  a  school  if 
Friends  would  open  one.  The  board  and  tuition  of 
these  girls  were  to  be  paid  for  by  the  government  at 
the  rate  of  $167  each  as  in  the  case  of  those  sent  to 
the  White's  Institutes  of  Indiana  and  Iowa.  An  ap- 
propriation from  the  Indian  fund  was  also  made  to 
erect  an  addition  to  the  main  building  at  Cherokee  to 
provide  dormitory  room  for  the  new  scholars.     Bar- 

7  Western  Y.  M,  printed  Minutes,  1881,  pp.  41-43. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  243 

nabas  Hobbs,  who  acted  as  general  agent  for  the  Com- 
mittee of  Western  Yearly  Meeting,  again  went  to 
North  Carolina  and  made  all  arrangements  for  the 
erection  of  the  new  building  and  the  opening  of  the 
boarding  school. 

Thus  was  inaugurated  a  work  among  the  Eastern 
Cherokees  that  was  to  be  carried  on  by  Friends  for 
more  than  a  decade  with  most  encouraging  results. 
After  the  Boarding  School  had  been  in  operation  for 
one  year  the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  added 
twenty  boys  to  the  enrollment,  and  Congress  ap- 
propriated funds  for  a  boys'  dormitory  and  other 
school  facilities.  In  1888  the  number  of  boarding 
scholars  was  doubled  again  and  the  next  year  reached 
the  maximum  of  89.  During  most  of  the  period  the 
enrollment  in  the  five  day  schools,  apart  from  the 
boarding  school,  ran  well  over  200,  so  that  about  300 
Indian  children  were  usually  under  the  care  of  Friends 
for  school  instruction. 

Greatest  interest  centered  in  the  boarding  school  at 
Cherokee  because  there  the  children  could  be  influ- 
enced more  thoroughly  than  in  the  schools  which  they 
attended  only  during  school  hours.  The  routine  of 
study  and  work  in  the  boarding  school  was  arranged 
to  give  intellectual  training,  practice  in  domestic  and 
industrial  pursuits,  and  religious  instruction.  The 
girls  were  trained  in  all  branches  of  domestic  industry 
with  special  practice  in  cutting  and  fitting  clothes. 
The  boys  were  employed  outside  of  school  hours  in 
garden  and  field  work,  cultivating  fruit  trees,  fence 
and  road  making,  care  of  live-stock,  and  the  making 
of  shoes. 

Every  evening  the  school  assembled  for  Bible  read- 


244  FRIENDS    AND   THE    INDIANS. 

ing,  song  and  prayer.  On  Sundays  Bible  lessons  were 
given  and  a  meeting  for  worship  held. 

The  Indian  children  were  easily  governed  and  very 
affectionate.  They  were  industrious  and  obedient  and 
always  seemed  contented  and  happy.  Many  of  them 
yielded  to  the  Christian  influences  thrown  about  them 
and  seemed  to  be  genuinely  converted  to  Christianity.^ 

As  in  so  many  other  instances  the  way  of  Friends 
in  this  piece  of  work  was  not  always  smooth.  There 
were  petty  jealousies  and  suspicions  to  be  overcome 
among  the  Indians.  There  were  white  people  in  the 
vicinity  who  coveted  the  government  positions  and 
funds  available  for  the  work.  This  opposition  became 
so  active  about  1885  that  Barnabas  Hobbs  found  it 
necessary  to  go  to  Washington  to  meet  charges  that 
were  preferred  against  Friends'  management  of  their 
trust.  About  1890  similar  difficulties  arose  again  and 
in  addition  a  misunderstanding  arose  with  Henry  W. 
Spray  who  had  been  Superintendent  of  the  Boarding 
School  since  1884.  With  the  various  difficulties  ham- 
pering the  work  it  seemed  best  to  Friends  to  with- 
draw from  the  field.  An  arrangement  was  made  for 
the  government  to  repay  Friends  a  portion  of  the 
money  that  had  been  expended  by  them  in  buildings 
and  other  improvements  and  in  the  fall  of  1892  the 
premises  of  the  boarding  school  were  handed  over  to 
the  government.^ 

Thus  ended  the  decade  of  work  done  by  Friends 
for  the  Eastern  Cherokees.  It  was  a  difficult  piece  of 
work,  it  met  many  obstacles  throughout  the  period, 
and  came  to  a  close  under  unfortunate  circumstances. 

8  Western  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1888,  pp.  61-62. 
^  Same,  1892,  p.  71;  1893,  p.  75. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  245 

Yet  as  in  many  similar  instances  Friends  did  their 
work  faithfully  and  well  while  "the  way  was  open." 
When  the  way  closed  they  withdrew  quietly  and 
turned  their  minds  and  hands  to  other  fields  of  In- 
dian service.  Yet  the  results  obtained  in  the  lives  of 
many  Indian  children  who  were  trained  in  the  Friends' 
schools  made  it  seem  that  the  labor  and  care  and  money 
expended  had  been  well  invested.^^ 

Southeastern  Alaska. 

The  work  among  the  Indians  of  Alaska,  while  clas- 
sified as  foreign  mission  work  and  not  usually  con- 
nected in  people's  minds  with  that  among  the  tribes 
of  the  United  States  proper,  is  nevertheless  a  work 
among  American  Indians.  The  earlier  missionary  ef- 
fort of  Friends  in  this  region  was  carried  on  in  south- 
eastern Alaska  among  the  Indians  of  the  Koluschan 
linguistic  stock,  while  the  present  work  is  among 
Eskimauan  Indians  in  far  northern  Alaska. 

The  work  in  southeastern  Alaska  was  established 
as  the  result  of  a  "  concern  "  that  arose  in  the  mind 
of  Elwood  W.  Weesner,  of  Timbered  Hills  Monthly 
Meeting,  Kansas,  the  same  meeting  from  which  Jere- 
miah Hubbard  went  out  to  his  work  in  the  Indian 
Territory.^^  This  concern  was  laid  before  Kansas 
Yearly  Meeting  at  its  session  of  1886  and  was  en- 
dorsed by  the  meeting.  As  a  result  Elwood  Weesner, 
having  WiUiam  F.  Bangham,  of  Ohio,  associated  with 

10  An  account  by  Barnabas  C.  Hobbs  of  the  early  years  of  the 
work  for  the  Eastern  Cherokees  is  to  be  found  in  Alice  C. 
Fletcher,  Indian  Education  and  Civilisation,  pp.  686—688  (48 
Cong.,  26.  Sess.,  Sen.  Exec.  Doc.  95). 

11  Elwood  Weesner  accompanied  Jeremiah  Hubbard  on  some 
of  his  earliest  journeys  among  the  Indians. 

17 


246  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

him,  settled  at  Douglas  Island,  Alaska,  in  the  early 
summer  of  1887. 

Elwood  Weesner  soon  made  an  arduous  trip  on  foot 
to  nearly  all  the  camps  and  villages  on  the  island  in 
order  to  study  the  situation  and  needs  of  the  natives. 
He  found  them  all  living  in  log  or  frame  houses,  and 
dressed  in  citizens'  clothing.  Usually  two  or  three 
families  lived  in  the  same  house.  Many  were  filthy  in 
their  habits  but  some  were  of  cleanly  dress  and  in- 
telligent countenance.  There  were  many  orphan 
children  who  were  in  great  need,  the  girls  often  being 
sold  into  lives  of  abuse  and  shame  while  yet  at  a  very 
tender  age.  These  and  the  natives  generally  needed 
protection  from  a  rough  element  of  whites  who  were 
coming  upon  the  island  in  large  numbers  on  account 
of  the  recent  discovery  of  rich  gold  deposits  in  the 
vicinity 

The  two  Friends  lost  no  time  in  beginning  a  work 
of  Christian  ministration  and  teaching  that  was  des- 
tined to  continue  under  the  care  of  Friends  for  twenty- 
five  years  and  then  be  passed  on  to  other  faithful 
hands. 

Elwood  Weesner  and  William  Bangham  lived  for 
some  weeks  in  a  small  rented  cabin  and  then  moved 
to  a  larger  frame  building  in  which  they  conducted  a 
school  with  an  average  attendance  of  18  scholars.^^ 

The  following  year  Silas  and  Anna  Moon,  who  had 
been  engaged  formerly  in  work  among  the  Indians  of 
Oklahoma,  entered  the  Alaska  field  at  Douglas  in 
association  with  Elwood  Weesner  and  family.  Wil- 
liam F.  Bangham  at  the  same  time  returned  to  his 
home  in  Ohio. 

12  Kansas  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1887,  pp.  54-55. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  247 

A  new  mission  home  was  soon  completed  largely  by 
the  labor  of  Elwood  Weesner  and  Silas  Moon,  who 
carried  2,000  feet  of  lumber  nearly  one-half  mile  and 
100  logs  about  half  that  distance  on  their  shoulders. 
Anna  Moon  conducted  the  school  for  the  Indian  chil- 
dren. 

During  the  vacation  period  the  Friends  spent  much 
time  visiting  among  the  natives,  ministering  to  the 
sick, — talking,  reading,  and  praying  with  them.  One 
man  about  to  die  asked  to  be  baptized  and  it  was  nec- 
essary to  explain  to  him  Friends'  belief  in  the  efficacy 
of  a  spiritual  baptism  alone.  Several  of  the  natives 
were  aided  by  simple  remedies  given  to  them  in  their 
illness  and  were  thus  won  to  a  confidence  in  the  aims 
and  message  of  the  missionaries. 

A  Sunday  School  was  opened  with  encouraging  re- 
sults, nearly  50  Indians  being  present  at  times.  After 
the  Sunday  School  a  meeting  for  worship  was  held 
and  in  the  evening  a  prayer  meeting.  The  Indians 
responded  to  the  message  of  the  Gospel  and  at  times, 
with  tears  streaming  down  their  faces,  would  testify 
to  God's  goodness  to  them.^^ 

The  work  of  the  following  years  was  carried  on 
largely  along  the  lines  thus  laid  down  by  the  pioneer 
missionaries  in  the  field  The  school  work  was  looked 
upon  as  one  of  the  most  important  labors  because  it 
would  influence  permanently  the  rising  generation. 
For  many  years  the  government  paid  a  salary  to  the 
Friend  who  taught  the  school,  and  thus  the  task  of 
financing  the  mission  was  lightened.  For  a  long 
period  several  Indian  children  were  boarded  in  the 
mission  home  where  they  could  have  the  special  care 

13  Kansas  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1888,  pp.  28-33. 


248  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

of  those  whose  Hves  were  devoted  to  their  physical 
and  spiritual  nurture.  Aside  from  the  work  of  the 
school  at  Douglas,  Friends  were  instrumental  in  hav- 
ing many  of  the  Indian  children  placed  in  government 
or  in  Friends'  schools  in  the  home  land. 

The  purely  religious  work  prospered  greatly  as  the 
years  passed  and  in  1894  a  Friends'  meeting  of  42 
members  was  organized  at  Douglas  and  this  member- 
ship was  largely  increased  in  the  following  years.  One 
of  the  most  encouraging  results  of  the  religious  ef- 
forts was  the  development  of  several  efficient  native 
workers  who  helped  greatly  in  spreading  the  Gospel 
message  among  their  own  people. 

As  the  years  passed  the  religious  work  developed 
both  extensively  and  intensively.  A  mission  launch 
was  provided  and  the  workers  were  thus  enabled  to 
visit  various  outlying  settlements  and  go  to  the  help 
of  needy  Indians  in  isolated  places.  At  the  same  time 
the  religious  work  in  and  about  Douglas  City  became 
more  varied  and  interesting.  A  view  of  the  work  in 
the  later  years  is  contained  in  the  following  excerpt 
from  the  report  of  1907:  "Annis  Peebles  continued 
visiting  native  homes,  teaching  the  older  people  to 
read  in  primers,  Bibles  and  hymn-books ;  also  taking 
turns  with  leaders  from  other  churches  in  conducting 
meetings  for  native  women  on  alternate  weeks  along 
the  plan  of  the  W.  C.  T.  U.  with  pledge  signing  and 
discussion  of  how  to  uplift  womanhood,  better  society, 
protect  the  homes,  and  kindred  subjects.  She  also 
holds  weekly  meetings  for  the  children,  teaching  Bible 
lessons  and  temperance  facts,  following  the  plan  of 
Junior  C.  E.   Societies.     She  also   superintends   the 


MANY   WORKS    IN    MANY   FIELDS.  249 

native  Sunday  School,  and  through  an  interpreter 
teaches  the  entire  school  in  one  class."^* 

Aside  from  the  work  on  Douglas  Island  the  other 
station  maintained  by  Friends  in  southeastern  Alaska 
was  among  the  Kake  Indians  on  Kupreanoff  Island 
about  lOO  miles  south  of  Douglas. 

Friends  of  Oregon,  especially  those  at  Newberg, 
had  been  interested  in  the  work  at  Douglas  from  its 
early  years  and  had  often  given  aid  to  it.  In  1892 
they  had  sent  Frances  E.  Leiter  of  Kansas  to  take 
up  the  work  of  field  matron  on  Douglas  Island.  So 
it  came  about  that  soon  after  Oregon  Yearly  Meeting 
was  organized  (1893)  the  way  opened  for  Friends  of 
the  new  Yearly  Meeting  to  start  a  separate  mission  at 
Kake  village. 

The  attention  of  Friends  was  especially  directed  to 
Kupreanoif  Island  by  the  martyrdom  there  of  Charles 
H.  Edwards.  He  was  a  young  Friend  who  had  been 
for  a  time  Principal  of  Hesper  Academy,  Kansas. 
He  went  to  Douglas,  Alaska,  in  1889  under  appoint- 
ment of  the  Committee  of  Kansas  Yearly  Meeting 
and  did  splendid  work  teaching  and  preaching. 

In  the  fall  of  1891  he  took  a  position  under  the  gov- 
ernment to  teach  a  school  among  the  Kake  Indians 
on  Kupreanoff  Island.     In  the  following  January  he 

1*  Kansas  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1907,  p,  39. — It  is  impossible 
in  this  brief  sketch  even  to  mention  the  names  of  all  the  faithful 
workers  who  labored  on  Douglas  Island.  Especially  notable  in 
the  capacity  of  Superintendents  were  Silas  and  Anna  Moon,  Dr. 
James  E.  Connett,  Charles  and  Mary  Replogle,  Samuel  A.  and 
Lula  Jackson,  and  J.  Perry  and  Martha  Hadley.  Among  the 
other  workers  were  Charles  H.  Edwards,  Frances  E.  Leiter, 
Sibyl  J.  Hansen,  Jennie  Lawrence,  Mida  Lawrence,  Annis 
Peebles,  and  for  a  short  time  Josiah  Dillon.  Dr.  W.  V.  Coffin, 
Francis  A.  Wright,  and  others,  made  helpful  visits  to  the  mission 
field. 


250  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

attempted  to  prevent  two  white  men  from  bringing 
liquor  illicitly  upon  the  island  to  sell  to  the  Indians 
and  one  of  the  men  shot  him.^^ 

Stirred  by  the  martyrdom  of  Charles  Edwards, 
Friends  of  Oregon  Yearly  Meeting  decided  to  carry 
on  the  work  begun  by  him  among  the  Kake  Indians. 
As  a  result  Silas  and  Anna  Moon  and  Frances  E. 
Leiter,  who  had  previously  been  engaged  in  the  work 
at  Douglas,  went  to  Kake  village  in  1894  and  began  a 
similar  work  among  the  Indians  there. 

They  found  the  Kake  Indians  in  a  very  low  state  of 
civilization,  and  in  dire  need  of  physical  as  well  as 
spiritual  help.  To  these  needs  the  missionaries  set 
themselves  to  minister  in  ways  similar  to  those  that 
had  proved  effective  on  Douglas  Island  A  day 
school  was  opened  for  the  Indian  children,  a  meeting 
for  worship,  Sunday  School  and  prayer-meetings 
were  regularly  held,  and  as  opportunity  offered  the 
Indians  were  visited  and  helped  in  their  homes.  Soon 
they  began  to  respond  to  the  Gospel  message  and  many 
became  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends. 

As  the  years  passed  these  labors  of  love  began  to 
tell  unmistakably  in  the  general  advancement  of  the 
natives.  After  Silas  and  Anna  Moon  had  been  labor- 
ing on  the  island  for  ten  years  the  progress  of  the 
Indians  had  been  so  marked  that  the  Foreign  Mission- 
ary Board  of  Oregon  Yearly  Meeting  could  report  as 
follows :  "  The  object  lesson  of  a  well  conducted  Chris- 

15  Charles  Edwards  did  not  live  to  tell  his  version  of  the 
shooting  but  apparently  he  tried  to  arrest  the  two  smugglers 
although  having  no  legal  warrant  for  such  procedure.  There- 
fore on  their  own  testimony,  confirmed  by  that  of  the  natives,  the 
murderers  escaped  punishment  on  a  plea  of  self-defense. — 
Friends'  Review,  45  (1892)  :  477-478,  508-509,  526. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  251 

tian  home  is  a  powerful  factor  in  successful  mission- 
ary enterprises.  Ten  years  ago  only  one  house  on  the 
island  had  windows,  and  the  glass  was  mostly  broken 
in  them ;  a  few  had  lanterns — no  stoves,  no  chairs,  no 
bed-steads,  no  sewing  machines.  Now  many  homes 
possess  these  and  sundry  other  comforts.  A  most 
laudable  desire  is  begotten  in  the  hearts  of  many  to 
have  little  homes  of  their  own,  with  a  small  garden 
and  a  few  domestic  animals,  such  as  cows  and  chick- 
ens. .  .  .  The  neat,  white  cottage  of  the  missionaries, 
the  garden  and  small  orchard  of  apple  and  cherry 
trees,  with  their  beautiful  bloom,  are  silent  but  power- 
ful influences  for  good — a  practical  lesson  in  good 
citizenship."^^ 

The  close  of  the  work  of  Friends  in  southeastern 
Alaska  was  brought  about  through  a  general  reor- 
ganization of  a  large  part  of  the  mission  work  of 
American  Friends.  For  some  years  under  the  de- 
voted and  efficient  leadership  of  its  General  Secretary, 
Charles  E.  Tebbetts,  The  American  Friends'  Board  of 
Foreign  Missions,  of  the  Five  Years'  Meeting,  en- 
deavored to  get  the  various  yearly  meetings  to  place 
their  foreign  missionary  work  under  the  care  of  the 
Board.  Two  of  the  great  objects  in  view  were,  first 
to  centralize  and  unify  the  missionary  efforts  of 
Friends,  and  second  to  bring  these  efforts  into  har- 

16  Oregon  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1904,  p.  13. — Except  for  an 
occasional  short  visit  to  the  states  Silas  and  Anna  Moon  served 
for  about  twelve  years  among  the  Kake  Indians.  Among  other 
workers  who  served  on  the  island  were  Frances  Leiter,  Anna 
Hunnicutt  (later  Foster),  Lizzie  Morris  (later  Gooden),  Harlan 
and  Melinda  Smith,  Anna  Bell  Gardner,  Jay  Mills,  Levert  Bray, 
Calva  and  Frankie  Martin.  Alpheus  and  Seth  Mills  and  other 
Friends  made  helpful  visits  to  the  mission. 


252  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

monious  cooperation  with  the  work  of  other  evan- 
gelical denominations. 

As  the  work  for  the  Alaska  Indians  was  classed  as 
foreign  mission  work,  it  was  directly  affected  when 
the  yearly  meetings  in  charge  of  it  placed  their  work 
under  the  care  of  the  American  Board.  During  the 
years  1909  and  1910  the  foreign  mission  work  of  Kan- 
sas and  Oregon  Yearly  Meetings  was  placed  under 
the  care  of  the  American  Board  and  a  joint  Field 
Committee  composed  of  members  of  the  two  yearly 
meetings  was  appointed  to  have  the  immediate  direc- 
tion of  the  missions  at  Douglas  and  Kake.  Since  the 
Oregon  Friends  were  so  much  nearer  to  the  field  of 
operations  it  was  decided  that  they  should  bear  the 
chief  burdens  of  administering  the  work  at  the  mis- 
sions, although  Kansas  Friends  would  continue  their 
financial  support.^^ 

The  work  of  Friends  in  southeastern  Alaska  was 
however  drawing  to  a  close.  With  the  missions  under 
the  general  oversight  of  the  American  Friends'  Board 
it  was  inevitable  that  more  regard  should  be  paid  to  a 
proper  apoprtionment  of  the  mission  field  among  the 
various  denominations.  Viewed  from  this  standpoint 
it  seemed  clear  that  the  field  in  the  vicinity  of  Douglas 
and  Kake  would  be  better  served  by  the  Presbyterians. 
They  had  preceded  Friends  in  the  mission  work  of 
southeastern  Alaska,  and  their  missions  were  more 

17  Kansas  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1908,  p.  30;  1909,  p.  34. 
Oregon  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1909,  pp.  24-27;  1910,  p.  25. — It 
should  be  stated  that  for  some  years  Wilmington  Yearly  Meeting 
aided  financially  in  support  of  the  work  at  Douglas,  and  many 
individual  Friends  of  eastern  yearly  meetings  contributed.  A 
part  of  the  work  at  Kake  village  was  supported  for  a  short  time 
by  the  Young  People's  Society  of  Christian  Endeavor  of  Cali- 
fornia Yearly  Meeting. 


MANY   WORKS    IN    MANY   FIELDS.  253 

extensive  and  better  equipped  for  educational  and  re- 
ligious work  than  those  of  Friends.  Consequently  it 
was  decided  by  Kansas  and  Oregon  Yearly  Meetings 
in  1911  to  hand  over  their  work  to  the  Presbyterian 
Board  and  during  the  following  months  this  transfer 
was  accompHshed.  Thus  the  missions  of  Friends 
among  the  Indians  of  southeastern  Alaska  passed  for 
further  care  and  development  into  other  devoted 
hands. 

Northern  Alaska. 

The  missions  established  and  still  maintained  by 
Calfiornia  Yearly  Meeting  in  northern  Alaska  are  a 
direct  outgrowth  of  the  work  so  long  maintained  in 
southeastern  Alaska  by  Friends  of  Kansas  and 
Oregon. 

Kotzebue  Sound  lies  more  than  a  thousand  miles  in 
a  direct  line  northwest  of  Douglas  Island  and  much 
farther  than  that  by  the  roundabout  boat  passage.  In 
the  fall  of  1896  two  Eskimo  Indian  men  came  from 
this  far  northern  point  to  the  Friends'  mission  at 
Douglas  seeking  for  a  missionary  who  would  settle 
among  them  and  teach  them  the  way  of  light.  Their 
people  had  heard  something  of  the  Gospel  story 
through  missions  at  other  places  in  the  north  land,  and 
Dr.  Sheldon  Jackson  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  had 
told  them  on  a  recent  visit  to  their  settlement  that  per- 
haps the  Friends  could  send  a  missionary  to  them. 
So  the  two  men  had  been  sent  on  their  far  quest. 
Since  it  was  too  late  in  the  fall  to  hope  for  a  passing 
vessel  in  the  northern  waters  the  men  had  made  the 
first  stage  of  their  journey,  about  25a  miles,  in  an 
open  canoe.     Arrived  at  Cape  Prince  of  Wales  they 


254  FRIENDS  AND  THE   INDIANS. 

took  passage  in  a  boat  for  Sitka  and  after  many  de- 
lays and  perplexities  arrived  at  the  Friends'  mission 
on  Douglas  Island  and  made  their  plea  to  Charles 
Replogle  who  was  in  charge  there.  He  and  Anna 
Hunnicutt,  who  was  also  located  at  Douglas,  took  the 
opening  very  much  upon  their  hearts  and  each  in  turn 
journeyed  to  CaHfornia  to  lay  the  matter  before 
Friends  there. 

As  a  result  of  this  unique  call  to  a  new  field  of 
service  Anna  Hunnicutt  (later  Foster)  and  Robert 
and  Carrie  Samms  were  sent  northward  in  the  early 
summer  of  1897  to  carry  the  Gospel  message  to  those 
who  had  sought  it  so  diligently.  After  a  stormy  voy- 
age of  six  weeks  they  landed  upon  the  open,  wind- 
swept shores  of  Cape  Blossom  and  there,  almost  under 
the  Arctic  Circle,  began  the  great  missionary  enter- 
prise still  maintained  by  Friends  of  California  Yearly 
Meeting. 

The  details  of  how  the  work  was  founded  and  how 
it  developed  cannot  be  given  in  this  brief  sketch.  The 
hardships  of  the  early  years,  the  sacrifices  at  home 
and  in  the  field  were  truly  heroic.  Gradually  new 
opportunities  came  to  open  other  stations  at  various 
places  on  the  open  shore  or  up  the  rivers  that  empty 
into  Kotzebue  Sound.  In  1898  there  was  a  great  in- 
flux of  miners  and  this  brought  new  problems  and  new 
opportunities  for  service.  As  the  years  have  passed 
Friends  have  served  as  missionaries  or  teachers  at 
Kotzebue,  Deering,  Noatuk,  Kivalina,  Oksik,  Shung- 
nak,  Selawik,  and  Buckland.  Meetings  have  been  es- 
tablished at  six  of  these  places. 

The  hardships  often  suffered  by  the  missionaries  at 
these  far  northern  stations  are  unique  in  the  history 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  256 

of  Friends'  work  for  the  American  Indians.  The  story 
of  the  work  and  suffering  of  Alfred  and  Priscilla 
Walton  at  Kivalina  is  typical.  Their  station  was  lOO 
miles  northwest  of  Kotzebue,  away  in  the  Arctic  night. 
On  one  occasion  their  supplies  ran  low  and  no  med- 
ical help  was  at  hand  when  a  little  child  was  born  to 
them.  The  other  children  were  crying  for  food  and 
for  days  the  wife  was  in  a  delirium.  At  last  she  re- 
vived somewhat  and,  as  the  ice  had  formed  sufficient 
for  travel,  Alfred  Walton  made  the  journey  with  dogs 
and  sledge  through  the  Arctic  night  i6o  miles  and 
back,  to  procure  food  and  other  supplies  for  the  suf- 
fering family.  Then  after  a  few  months  the  angel  of 
death  visited  them  and  the  little  child  was  taken  away. 
So  far  from  home  and  friends,  away  from  the  sun- 
shine and  flowers,  their  burden  of  grief  was  indeed 
heavy  as  they  placed  the  body  in  the  cold,  frozen 
ground.  Yet  in  the  darkness  and  loneHness  of  their 
surroundings  the  mother  could  write  that  the  light  of 
God  broke  in  upon  their  sorrow,  and  they  could  see 
their  little  one  in  the  sunshine  of  His  presence,  "  the 
first  sunshine  the  little  darling  had  ever  seen."^^ 

Yet  the  labor  and  sacrifice  and  suffering  have  not 
been  in  vain.  The  Eskimos  of  the  Kotzebue  region 
when  Friends  first  went  among  them  lived  largely  on 
the  products  of  hunting  and  fishing.  They  moved  up 
and  down  the  coast-lines  and  rivers  establishing  tem- 
porary camps  and  living  in  igloos,  several  families  to- 
gether. These  conditions  have  been  largely  changed 
by  the  work  of  the  missionaries  and  the  government. 
The  settlements  are  larger  and  more  permanent.  Com- 
fortable houses  have  been  built  with  many  modern  im- 

18  California  Y.  M.  printed  Minutes,  1908,  pp.  77-78. 


256  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

provements.  The  Eskimos  are  able  to  trade  their 
reindeer  meat,  hides,  furs  and  fish  at  the  stores  for 
canned  goods,  dried  fruit,  flour,  and  house-furnish- 
ings.^^ As  a  result  of  this  more  settled  life  the  gov- 
ernment is  now  helping  to  establish  the  Eskimos  of 
the  region  in  a  few  well-planned,  well-located,  model 
villages,  and  Friends  are  having  an  important  part  in 
carrying  out  this  plan. 

In  a  religious  way  the  results  of  the  missionary 
work  have  been  hardly  short  of  marvelous.  There 
has  been  practically  a  transformation  of  the  whole 
people.  Many  of  the  natives  have  become  earnest 
consistent  Christians  and  effective  religious  workers. 
They  superintend  Bible  Schools,  teach  classes,  and 
hold  various  church  offices.  Out  of  a  population  of 
about  1,400  there  are  679  believing  church  members 
enrolled  in  four  organized  Monthly  Meetings.  There 
are  five  church  buildings,  six  mission  homes,  and  one 
hospital. 

Such  in  brief  statement  are  the  results  of  19  years 
of  labor  among  the  Eskimos  of  the  Kotzebue  Sound 
region.  They  sat  in  darkness  but  they  found  the  light 
when  they  sought  it.  They  lived  in  ignorance  and 
degradation.  They  are  to-day  a  hopeful,  progressive, 
redeemed  people.  The  story  of  the  work  done  among 
them  is  one  of  the  finest  chapters  in  the  history  of 
Friends'  Indian  missions.^^ 

19  The  government  has  aided  in  establishing  reindeer  herds 
as  a  live-stock  industry. 

20  This  sketch  is  based  largely  upon  the  pamphlet  entitled  Mis- 
sion Work  of  California  Friends,  issued  by  the  American  Friends 
Board  of  Foreign  Missions,  Richmond,  Ind.,  1912;  and  articles 
by  Benjamin  S.  Coppock  and  Rhoda  M.  Hare  in  the  Friends' 
Missionary  Advocate,  August,   1916.     The  Mimctes  of  California 


many  works  in  many  fields.  257 

Various  Activities. 

Aside  from  the  missionary  activities  thus  far  re- 
counted Friends  have  been  connected  with  various 
organizations  for  the  uplift  of  the  Indians. 

The  Indian  Rights  Association  of  Philadelphia  was 
organized  in  1882  and  has  done  splendid  service  in 
securing  beneficial  legislation  and  improved  admin- 
istration for  the  Indian  service.^^ 

Friends  have  been  prominently  connected  with  this 
organization  from  the  time  it  was  established. 

At  the  present  time  (1917)  seven  Friends  are  mem- 
bers of  the  Board  of  Directors  and  Samuel  M.  Brosius, 
a  Friend,  is  the  Agent  of  the  Association  at  the  seat 
of  government  in  Washington,  D.  C. 

Since  1883  the  Mohonk  Indian  Conferences  have 
brought  together  annually  many  philanthropic  people 
for  the  discussion  of  Indian  problems  and  the  pro- 
motion of  Indian  welfare. 

These  conferences  were  originated  by  a  Friend, 
Albert  K.  Smiley,  who  was  a  member  of  the  United 

Yearly  Meeting  have  also  been  used.  Interesting  accounts  of 
personal  experiences  are  to  be  found  in  Charles  Replogle,  Among 
the  Indians  of  Alaska.  London.  1904. — Among  those,  not  men- 
tioned above,  who  have  done  missionary  or  teaching  work  in  the 
Kotzebue  region  are  the  following :  Martha  E.  Hadley  (later 
Trueblood),  Richard  Glover,  Dana  and  Otha  Thomas,  Bertha 
Cox  (later  King),  William  T.  and  Lizzie  Gooden,  James  V.  and 
Eva  Geary,  Eli  and  Minnie  Myers,  Herbert  York  and  wife,  Elmer 
Harnden  and  wife,  Leslie  Sickles  and  wife,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Benja- 
min Newsome,  Wilson  H.  and  Lucy  Cox,  Rhoda  M.  Hare,  Martha 
Hunnicutt,  Milton  and  Margaret  White,  ElizaJbeth  Stratton, 
Charles  and  May  Replogle,  Clinton  S.  and  Nora  Replogle,  Ash- 
ugak  Taber. 

21  Hodge,  Handbook  of  American  Indians,  i  :  608—609.  See 
also  M.  K.  Sniffen,  Record  of  Thirty  Years.  Drexel  Bldg.,  Phila, 
19 1 3.  Also  Annual  Reports  of  Indian  Rights  Association. 
Phila. 


258  FRIENDS  AND  THE   INDIANS. 

States  Board  of  Indian  Commissioners.  At  his  hotel 
overlooking  Lake  Mohonk,  New  York,  the  members 
of  the  Conference  became  his  personal  guests  for 
several  days  in  the  fall  of  each  year. 

Alfred  H.  Smiley,  a  brother  of  Albert  K.  Smiley, 
was  for  many  years  actively  interested  in  the  work  of 
the  Monhonk  Conferences  and  since  the  decease  of 
both  men  the  work  has  been  carried  forward  by  their 
brother,  Daniel  Smiley. 

The  Mohonk  Conferences  have  done  much  to  facil- 
itate the  intelligent  discussion  of  and  agitation  for 
desirable  reforms  in  the  Indian  service.^^ 

Friends  have  been  actively  connected  from  the  be- 
ginning with  the  work  of  the  Northern  California 
Indian  Association  which  was  organized  in  1894.  This 
association  has  done  great  service  in  promoting  mis- 
sionary and  philanthropic  work  among  the  California 
Indians  and  in  securing  beneficial  legislation  from  the 
federal  government.  One  of  its  most  important  ac- 
tivities was  the  agitation  that  resulted  in  the  purchase 
of  lands  by  the  government  for  the  landless  Indians 
of  California. ^^ 

Various  individual  Friends  not  mentioned  in  con- 

22  Hodge,  Handbook  of  American  Indians,  i :  928-929.  See 
also  Annual  Reports  of  Lake  Mohonk  Indian  Conferences.  Lake 
Mohonk,  N.  Y.  Various  pamphlets  on  the  origin  and  objects  of 
the  Conference  may  be  had  by  addressing  The  Indian  Con- 
ference, Lake  Mohonk,  N.  Y. 

23  Among  the  Friends  who  have  taken  an  active  part  in  the 
work  of  the  Northern  California  Indian  Assoc,  may  be  mentioned 
Joel  and  Hannah  E.  Bean,  James  Bean,  Augustus  and  Anna  F. 
Taber,  and  Cornelia  Taber.  Pliny  Earle  Goddard  and  wife  were 
for  a  time  in  charge  of  a  mission  among  the  Hupa  Indians  in 
northern  California. — See  Cornelia  Taber,  California  and  Her 
Indian  Children.  San  Jose,  Cal.,  191 1.  Also  Annual  Reports  of 
the  National  Indian  Association,  N.  Y. 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  259 

nection  with  any  of  the  above  activities  have  yet  been 
engaged  in  some  form  of  Indian  service. 

Guion  Miller,  an  attorney  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
was  for  many  years  a  legal  representative  of  the 
Seneca  Indians  and  other  New  York  tribes  in  pressing 
their  claims  upon  the  federal  government  Aside  from 
this  he  was  on  two  occasions  appointed  a  Special 
Agent  by  the  government  for  the  distribution  of  large 
sums  of  money  granted  to  the  Indians  in  response  to 
their  claims. 

Philip  C.  Garrett,  of  Philadelphia,  was  for  many 
years  engaged  in  various  activities  for  the  help  of  the 
Indians.  He  was  appointed  by  President  Harrison 
on  the  United  States  Board  of  Indian  Commissioners, 
was  a  Special  Commissioner  to  the  Seneca  Indians  in 
1885,  was  at  one  time  President  of  the  Indian  Rights 
Association,  and  was  appointed  Chairman  of  a  special 
commission  on  the  New  York  Indians. 

At  the  present  time  George  Vaux,  Jr.,  of  Philadel- 
phia, Chairman  of  the  United  States  Board  of  Indian 
Commissioners,  is  arduously  engaged  in  directing  the 
many  beneficent  activities  of  that  body. 

Many  other  Friends  in  various  capacities  have 
served  the  Indians  in  recent  times  and  so  have  helped 
to  carry  on  the  old  tradition  of  Quaker  service  for  the 
native  inhabitants  of  America.^* 

24  Among  the  members  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting  who 
have  been  much  devoted  to  the  religious  welfare  of  the  Indians 
in  recent  years  may  be  mentioned  Joseph  S.  Elkinton,  George  J. 
Scattergood,  Zebedee  Haines,  and  Joseph  Elkinton,  the  two  first 
named  now  deceased. — See  Selections  from  the  Diary  and  Cor- 
respondence of  Joseph  S.  Elkinton.  Phila.,  1913. — At  an  earlier 
period  Christopher  Healy  (died  1851)  made  several  interesting 
religious  pilgrimages  among  the  Indians. — See  Memoir  of  Chris- 
topher Healy.    Phila.,  1886. 


260  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 


English  Friends. 

A  phase  of  this  whole  story  that  is  worthy  of  re- 
capitulation and  special  emphasis  is  the  interest  always 
shown  by  English  Friends  in  the  efforts  to  civilize  and 
Christianize  the  American  Indians. 

As  was  recounted  at  the  beginning  of  this  volume, 
many  of  the  earliest  apostles  of  Quakerism  that  came 
from  England  to  the  American  continent  felt  a  deep 
"  concern "  to  carry  the  Gospel  message  to  the  In- 
dians. Josiah  Coale,  John  Taylor,  John  Richardson, 
Thomas  Story,  and  George  Fox  himself  were  in  the 
van  of  a  long  Hne  of  English  Friends  reaching  to  the 
present  time,  who  have  come  to  America  bearing  a 
special  message  of  peace  and  good-will  to  the  natives 
of  the  country. 

In  time  of  crisis  or  of  new  opportunity  English 
Friends  have  always  come  to  the  aid  of  the  Indian 
work  carried  on  by  American  Friends. 

In  the  dark  days  following  1750  when  the  French 
and  Indian  War  was  approaching,  Samuel  Fothergill 
and  other  English  Friends  counseled  and  encouraged 
American  Friends  to  preserve  unsullied  their  ancient 
testimony  of  peace  with  the  Indians,  and  John  Hunt 
and  Christopher  Wilson  brought  over  seas  the  official 
advice  of  London  Yearly  Meeting  to  the  same  effect. 

When  the  new  policy  of  establishing  permanent 
mission  stations  among  the  Indian  tribes  was  being 
worked  out  in  the  early  years  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury English  Friends  provided  a  fund  of  more  than 
$31,000  to  help  support  the  w^ork,  and  later  contribu- 
tions were  made  for  the  same  purpose  by  English  and 
Irish  Friends.^^ 


25  See  above,  p.  139  and  note. — English  Friends  also  encouraged 


MANY   WORKS    IN    MANY   FIELDS.  261 

Again  when  a  great  new  field  of  opportunity  for 
Friends  was  opened  by  President  Grant  in  1869  and 
as  the  subsequent  missionary  efforts  of  the  Associated 
Executive  Committee  developed,  the  renewed  interest 
of  English  Friends  was  manifested  by  the  Indian  pil- 
grimages of  Stanley  Pumphrey,  Isaac  Sharp,  Henry 
Stanley  Newman  and  his  wife  Mary  Anna  Newman, 
and  Harriet  Green.^^ 

Such  has  been  the  interest  of  English  Friends  in 
the  American  natives.  There  have  been  many  com- 
mon interests  uniting  English  and  American  Friends 
at  various  times,  some  indeed  for  long  periods,  but 
perhaps  no  other  single  interest  in  a  definite  program 
of  Christian  effort  has  bound  them  together  through- 
out the  whole  period  of  Quaker  history  as  has  the 
work  for  the  American  Indians. 

General  Conclusion. 

For  more  than  two  centuries  and  a  half  Friends 
have  labored  for  the  civilization  and  Christianization 

Canadian  Friends  to  help  the  Indians  and  some  work  was  done  by 
an  Indian  Committee  of  Pelham  Quarterly  Meeting.  Aid  was  also 
extended  in  this  case,  as  in  others,  by  the  Murray  Fund,  ad- 
ministered by  New  York  Friends. — Extracts  from  Minutes  of 
London  Yearly  Meeting,  1858,  pp.  33-34.  Friends'  Review,  19 
(1865)  :   187-188. 

26  For  references  to  fuller  details  of  the  work  of  English 
Friends  see  Index. — London  Yearly  Meeting  in  1845  established 
a  Negro  and  Aborigine's  Fund.  This  appears  to  have  been 
primarily  for  the  benefit  of  British  subjects  in  the  West  Indies, 
New  Zealand  and  elsewhere,  but  some  help  was  extended  to 
needy  Indians  in  the  United  States  and  Canada. — Several  Eng- 
lish Friends,  including  William  Allen,  Josiah  Forster,  William 
Forster,  S.  Gurney,  Jun.,  Joseph  Pease,  and  the  late  Dr.  Thomas 
Hodgkin,  were  prominent  members  of  the  Aborigines  Protection 
Society,  organized  1837  in  England.  This  organization  included 
the  American  Indians  within  the  scope  of  its  interests. — Notes  by 
Norman  Penney,  Devonshire  House,  London. 
18 


262  FRIENDS   AND   THE   INDIANS. 

of  the  Indians.  It  would  be  difficult,  indeed  impos- 
sible, to  measure  accurately  the  results.  At  the  best 
progress  has  been  slow,  while  at  the  worst  there  has 
always  been  some  reward  of  effort. 

For  a  period  of  seventy-five  years  in  colonial  his- 
tory Friends  lived  at  peace  with  the  Indians  and  un- 
doubtedly won  a  unique  place  in  the  hearts  of  their 
dusky  friends. 

In  the  later  mission  period  thousands  of  Indians 
have  received  the  Christian  message  as  spoken  and 
exemplified  by  missionaries  of  the  Society  of  Friends, 
and  as  a  result  many  a  child  of  the  forest  has  died  with 
triumphant  faith  in  the  Gospel  promises. 

Throughout  the  whole  period  the  Indians  in  various 
localities  have  been  taught  the  arts,  customs,  and 
handicrafts  of  civilized  life. 

At  the  time  of  Grant's  Peace  Policy  Friends  suc- 
ceeded in  drawing  from  the  war-path  into  settled  pur- 
suits and  often  into  the  Christian  faith  some  of  the 
most  savage  and  bloodthirsty  Indians  of  the  western 
plains. 

At  the  present  time  (1917)  mission  estabHshments 
are  maintained  in  Oklahoma  and  Alaska  and  a  board- 
ing school  at  Tunesassa,  New  York. 

Such  has  been  the  answer  of  Friends  to  the  in- 
junction of  George  Fox,  their  founder,  which  he  sent 
in  a  message  to  America  shortly  before  his  death : 
"  Let  your  light  shine  among  the  Indians  .  .  .  that 
ye  may  answer  the  truth  in  them,  and  bring  them  to 
the  standard  and  ensign  that  God  hath  set  up,  Christ 
Jesus." 

Or,  in  the  picturesque  imagery  of  Indian  oratory, 
repeated  around  many  a  forest  council  fire,  the  long 


MANY   WORKS   IN    MANY   FIELDS.  263 

line  of  Quaker  apostles  to  the  Indians  have  been  bright 
links  in  the  covenant  chain  of  friendship  that  has 
bound  Friends  and  the  Indians  together, — "a  chain 
that  will  never  rust  nor  break,  but  will  remain  bright 
and  strong  as  long  as  the  sun  shines  in  the  heavens." 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL    NOTE. 

On  account  of  the  miscellaneous  nature  of  the  subjects 
covered  in  the  above  chapter  a  combined  bibliography  is 
not  given.  See  footnotes  in  each  section,  especially  notes 
6,  10,  20,  21,  22,  23,  24,  26. 


GENERAL  BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTE 

It  seemed  best  to  give  in  a  general  note  the  location  of  the 
principal  repositories  of  Quaker  records.  The  records  and 
libraries  of  yearly  meetings  not  mentioned  in  this  note  can 
be  located  by  addressing  the  central  offices  of  Liberal  and 
Orthodox  Friends,  as  noted  below  under  Philadelphia  and 
Richmond  respectively. 

Baltimore 

Liberal  Friends.  Manuscript  records  of  Baltimore  Yearly 
Meeting  and  Indian  Committee  are  in  vault  of  Meeting  House, 
Park  Avenue  and  Laurens  Street.  In  the  same  Meeting 
House  is  a  good  collection  of  printed  source  materials  and 
secondary  works,  including  a  nearly  complete  file  of  the 
printed  Minutes  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  since  1828. 

Orthodox  Friends.  Manuscript  records  of  Baltimore  Yearly 
Meeting  and  Indian  Committee  in  vault  of  Meeting  House  at 
Eutaw  and  Monument  Streets.  Some  printed  materials  at 
same  place. 

Barnesville,  Ohio 

Orthodox  Friends,  Conservative.  In  the  vault  of  the  Friends' 
Boarding  School  are  the  manuscript  Minutes  of  Ohio  Yearly 
Meeting,  conservative  branch. 

Germantown,  Pennsylvania 

Orthodox  Friends.  The  records  and  reports  of  the  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee  of  Friends  on  Indian  Affairs  are 
kept  in  the  vault  of  the  Friends'  Free  Library. 

Guilford  College,  North  Carolina 

Orthodox  Friends.  The  manuscript  Minutes  of  North  Caro- 
lina Yearly  Meeting  and  of  various  local  meetings  are  in  the 
vault  of  the  college  library. 

264 


GENERAL   BIBLIOGRAPHICAL    NOTE.  265 

Haverford,  Pennsylvania 

Orthodox  Friends.  In  the  library  of  Haverford  College  is 
a  very  large  and  valuable  collection  of  printed  materials  on 
Quaker  history.  Among  these  are  secondary  works,  files  of 
Friends'  periodicals,  printed  Minutes  of  Yearly  Meetings  and 
the  William  H.  Jenks  collection  of  Friends'  tracts,  mostly  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  There  are  also  some  manuscript 
materials. 

London,  England 

In  Devonshire  House,  138  Bishopsgate,  London,  E.  C,  is  the 
most  extensive  collection  of  manuscript  and  printed  materials 
on  Quaker  history  in  existence.  There  is  a  large  amount  of 
material  on  the  Indian  work  of  American  and  English  Friends. 

New  York 

Liberal  and  Orthodox  Friends.  Manuscript  Minutes  of 
both  New  York  Yearly  Meetings  and  of  Genessee  Yearly 
Meeting  (Liberal),  also  of  Indian  Committees  and  of  Quar- 
terly and  Monthly  Meetings,  at  226  East  Sixteenth  Street. 
This  is  probably  the  most  extensive  collection  of  manuscript 
Quaker  records  in  America. 

OsKALoosA,  Iowa 

Orthodox  Friends.  In  the  vault  of  Penn  College  are  the 
manuscript  Minutes  of  Iowa  Yearly  Meeting  and  in  the  col- 
lege library  is  a  collection  of  books  on  Quaker  history. 

Philadelphia 

Liberal  Friends.  Manuscript  records  of  Philadelphia  Yearly 
Meeting,  some  local  meetings,  and  of  the  Indian  Committee 
(incomplete)  in  vault  of  Meeting  House,  Fifteenth  and  Race 
Streets.    Apply  at  Central  Bureau,  150  North  Fifteenth  Street. 

For  information  as  to  location  of  Liberal  Yearly  Meetings 
throughout  America,  address  Advancement  Committee  of  Gen- 
eral Conference,  140  North  Fifteenth  Street. 

Orthodox  Friends.  Manuscript  records  of  Philadelphia 
Meeting  and  Indian  Committee  in  vault  of  Meeting  House, 
Fourth  and  Arch  Streets. 


266  FRIENDS  AND  THE  INDIANS. 

At  Friends'  Book  Store,  302  Arch  Street,  are  to  be  found 
many  publications  dealing  with  the  Indian  work  and  other 
activities  of  Friends,  especially  of  Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting. 

At  142  North  Sixteenth  Street,  is  a  collection  of  manuscript 
records  of  various  Quarterly  and  Monthly  Meetings  of  Phila- 
delphia Yearly  Meeting.  The  library  at  this  place  also  con- 
tains a  large  number  books  on  Quaker  history. 

(While,  of  course,  the  library  of  The  Historical  Society  of 
Pennsylvania  is  not  especially  a  repository  of  Quaker  records, 
it  may  be  mentioned  in  this  connection  as  containing  a  very 
large  collection  of  manuscript  and  printed  materials  on  the 
activities  of  Friends  in  the  early  history  of  Pennsylvania.) 

Providence,  Rhode  Island 

Orthodox  Friends.  The  manuscript  Minutes  of  New  Eng- 
land Yearly  Meeting  are  in  the  vault  of  Moses  Brown  School. 
In  the  library  of  the  school  are  some  printed  materials,  includ- 
ing a  set  of  Minutes  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  since  1847. 

Richmond,  Indiana 

Orthodox  Friends.  The  manuscript  Minutes  of  Indiana 
Yearly  Meeting  and  of  the  Indian  Committee  (incomplete) 
are  in  the  vault  of  the  East  Main  Street  Meeting  House. 
There  are  also  some  secondary  materials  in  the  library  of  the 
Meeting  House. 

At  Earlham  College  is  a  good  collection  of  printed  mate- 
rials, including  files  of  Friends'  periodicals  and  printed  Minutes 
of  various  Yearly  Meetings. 

For  information  as  to  location  of  Orthodox  Yearly  Meet- 
ings throughout  America,  address  Central  Office,  Five  Years' 
Meeting  of  Friends  in  America,  Richmond,  Indiana.  The 
General  Secretary  (1917)  is  Dr.  W.  C.  Woodward. 

SWARTHMORE,    PENNSYLVANIA 

Liberal  Friends.  In  the  library  of  Swarthmore  College  is  a 
valuable  collection  of  books  on  Quaker  history  and  files  of  the 
printed  Minutes  of  various  Yearly  Meetings. 


INDEX. 


Agricultural  Society,  founded 
by  Joseph  Elkinton  among 
Indians,    102. 

Agriculture,  among  Indians, 
of  New  York  State,  95,  97, 
102-105,  io7>  116;  of  Maine, 
113;  of  Indiana,  135;  of 
Ohio,  137,  138,  140;  west  of 
Mississippi  River,  143,  145, 
150,  17s,  189,  192,  193,  194, 
195 ;  at  White's  Institute, 
Indiana,  236 ;  at  White's  In- 
stitute, Iowa,  240 ;  among 
Eastern  Cherokees,  243 ; 
among  Alaska   Indians,   251. 

Alaska,  northern,  work  of 
Friends  in,  253-256,  2(>2. 

Alaska,  southeastern,  work  of 
Friends  in,  245-253. 

Aleutian  branch  of  Eskimauan 
Indians,  3. 

Alford,   Thomas   W.,  216  note. 

Allen,  Anna  C,  181  note. 

Allen,  William,  member  of  the 
Aborigines  Protection  Soci- 
ety, England,  261  note. 

Allotments  of  land  to  Indians, 
6,   192,   193,   194- 

Alsop,  Jane,  Wyandot  Indian 
woman,   217. 

American  Friends'  Board  of 
Foreign  Missions,  takes 
charge  of  work  among  Alas- 
ka Indians,  251-252;  trans- 
fers work  in  southeastern 
Alaska  to  Presbyterians,  252— 
253. 

Andrews,  Edwin,   181   note. 

Apache  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,    172   ff.,    176. 

Arapaho    Indians,    under    care 


of  Friends  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  172  ff.,  175, 
186. 

Archdale,  John,  Quaker  Gov- 
ernor of  the  Carolinas,  sale 
of  rum  to  Indians  forbidden 
in  regime  of,  54 ;  adjust- 
ment of  civil  disputes  be- 
tween whites  and  Indians 
under,  55  note;  prevents 
selling  of  some  Florida  In- 
dians into  slavery,  58 ; 
makes  treaty  of  peace  with 
Indians,    70. 

Arizona,  Indian  reservations 
in,   6. 

Arkansas   river,    181. 

Arnett,   Theresa,    144  note. 

Arnold,  Harrison  H.,  men- 
tioned in  Preface,  vi. 

Arnold,  Thomas,   112  note. 

Associated  Executive  Commit- 
tee of  Friends  on  Indian 
Affairs,  15;  foreshadowed, 
147  note;  fund  ready  for, 
158;  organized,  170;  be- 
gins labors  under  Grant's 
peace  policy,  173  ff.;  resigns 
official  work  under  govern- 
ment, 185 ;  missions  main- 
tained by  in  Oklahoma,  202 
ff. ;  forecasts  later  work, 
203-204 ;  work  of  in  Okla- 
homa at  its  height,  212; 
withdraws  from  some  sta- 
tions, 228  ;  recent  problems 
of,  230-232 ;  aids  White's 
Institute,    Indiana,    238. 

Bacon,   David,   34. 
Baldwin,  Jesse,    139  note. 
Bales,   Oliver  H.   and   Martha, 


267 


268 


INDEX. 


Superintendent  and  Matron 
of  White's  Institute,  Indi- 
ana, 237. 

Baltimore,  Maryland,  Friends' 
records  preserved  at,   264. 

Baltimore  Monthly  Meeting, 
supports  work  among  Iowa 
Indians,   213,   223. 

Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting 
(prior  to  division  of  1828), 
reawakened  interest  of  in 
Indians,  1795,  132;  aids  In- 
dians of  Indiana  and  Ohio, 
132-140;  aids  in  support  of 
mission  in  Kansas,   140  ff. 

Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting 
(Liberal  branch  after  1828), 
aids  New  York  Indians, 
119  ff . ;  cooperates  in 
Grant's  peace  policy,   165   ff. 

Baltimore  Yearly  Meeting  (Or- 
thodox branch  after  1828), 
aids  in  support  of  mission 
in  Kansas,  140  ff , ;  cooper- 
ates in  Grant's  peace  policy, 
166  ff. ;  cooperates  in  work 
of  Oklahoma  missions,  201  ff. 

Bangham,  William  F.,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  245  ff. 

Barclay,  Robert,  in  East  New 
Jersey,  45. 

Barclay's  Catechism,  Indian 
children    exercised    in,     151. 

Barnesville,  Ohio,  Friends' 
records  preserved  at,  264. 

Barrow,   Robert,   58. 

Battey,  Thomas  C.,  book  by 
on  experiences  among  In- 
dians, 199  note. 

Beales,  Thomas,  35. 

Bean,  James,  active  in  North- 
ern California  Indian  Asso- 
ciation, 258  note. 

Bean,  Joel  and  Hannah  E.,  ac- 
tive in  Northern  California 
Indian  Association,  258  note. 

Beard,  Elkanah  and  Irene,  la- 
bor among  western  Indians, 
181   note,  183,  203. 


Beede,  Cyrus,  172  note,  175 
and  note. 

Beeson,  Joseph,    134  note. 

Bettle,    Samuel,   Jr.,    164. 

Bible  Schools  established 
among  western  Indians,  210, 
220—221;  among  Eastern 
Cherokees,  242  ;  among  Alas- 
ka Indians,  247-249,  256. 

Bibliographical  notes,  15-18, 
Z7.  59,  83-88,  no,  131,  159- 
161,  199-200,  232-233,  2^1, 
264-266. 

Biddle,  John,  92   note. 

Big  Jim    Indian    Mission,   201, 

220,     2.21—222. 

Big  Jim,  Shawnee  Chief,  op- 
poses work  of  Friends,  222. 

Bishop,  George,  letter  to  from 
Josiah   Coale,  24   note. 

Bishop,    John    B.,    216    note. 

Blackfish,  Hiram  and  Ellen, 
Christian    Indians,    223. 

Black  Hoof,  Indian  Chief,  138. 

Blackledge,  Philander  and 
Caroline,  work  among  west- 
ern  Indians,  222. 

Blue  Jacket  Monthly  Meeting 
organized,   212. 

Board  of  Indian  Commission- 
ers, Friends  as  members  of, 
169   note. 

Bond,  Abel,  among  western 
Indians,    181    note. 

Bond,  Joseph,   133-134  note. 

Bonsall,  Isaac,   100. 

Bourne,  Richard,  missionary 
to   the   Indians,    11. 

Bowater,   John,    35. 

Bownas,    Samuel,    35. 

Braddock,  General,  defeat  of, 
66. 

Bradley,  Taylor,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note. 

Branen,    David,    134   note. 

Branen,  John,   133  note. 

Bray,  Levert,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,   251    note. 


INDEX. 


269 


Brebeuf,  Father,  Catholic  mis- 
sionary martyr,    lo. 

Brock,  Mary,   144  note. 

Brosius,  Augustus,  Indian 
Agent  under  Grant's  peace 
policy,   190  note. 

Brosius,  Samuel  M.,  Agent  at 
Washington  for  Indian 
Rights    Association,    257. 

Brotherton  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,    152. 

Brown,  Aaron,   141   note. 

Brown,  Clark  and  Elma  T., 
Superintendents  of  Oklaho- 
ma  missions,   229. 

Brown,  Jonathan,   144  note. 

Brown,  Thomas  C,  Superin- 
tendent of  Indian  schools 
among  Eastern  Cherokees, 
242. 

Brown,  T.  Wistar,  supports  In- 
dian work,  230  note. 

Buckland,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Budd,  Thomas,  35  ;  at  a  chief- 
tain's  death-bed,   43. 

Buffalo  Creek  Indians,  aided 
by  Friends,   105-106. 

Bull,  John,   181  note. 

Burgess,  William,  Indian 
Agent  182,   190  note. 

Butcher,  John,    134  note. 

Butler,  John,  visits  western 
Indians,   174,   181. 

Butler,  Lydia  M.,   144  note. 

Caddo  Indians,  school  work 
among,   177. 

California  Indians,  decrease 
of,  2. 

California,  Northern,  Indian 
Association,   258. 

California  Yearly  Meeting, 
young  people  of  aid  Alaska 
Indians,  252  note;  carries  on 
extensive  missionary  Work 
in  northern  Alaska,  253-256. 

Canada,  Friends  of  aid  In- 
dians,  260-261    note. 

Canada,  reservation  plan  in,  5, 


Canandaigua,  New  York, 
Friends  attend  Indian  treaty 
at,  90-91. 

Cancer,  Louis,  Catholic  mis- 
sionary   among    Indians,    10. 

Cape  Blossom,  Alaska,  254. 

Cape  Prince  of  Wales,  Alaska, 

253. 

Captive  White  Children  among 
Indians,  release  of  secured 
by   Friends,    178. 

Carolinas,  The,  evangelical  doc- 
trine purchased  by  George 
Fox  to  Indians  of,  20-21 ; 
Indian  slavery  in,  56,  58. 

Carter,  Jacob  V.,   172  note. 

Carter,  John  and  Achsa,  144 
note. 

Carter,   Nerena,    144  note. 

Cass,  Lewis,  Secretary  of  War, 
142. 

Catholic,  Roman,  mission  work 
among   the    Indians,    9-1 1. 

Cattaraugus  County,  N.  Y., 
settled,  97. 

Cattaraugus  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  104-106;  special  ef- 
forts of  Liberal  Friends 
among,   1 18-13 1. 

CayTiga,  mission  meeting  at, 
217. 

Central  Superintendency,  work 
of  Orthodox  Friends  for  In- 
dians  of,    170  ff. 

Chalkley,  Thomas,  preaches  to 
Shawnee  Indians  in  Penn- 
sylvania, 28. 

Chamberlain,    Olive,    215. 

Chandlee,  Gouldsmith,  134  note. 

Charles  II,  King,  grants  war 
powers  to  William  Penn,  62. 

Chase,  Amasa,    181    note. 

Cheraw  Indians,  North  Caro- 
lina,  52. 

Cherokee  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94 ;  in  west,  visited 
by  Friends,  148;  aided  by 
Friends,    171. 

Cherokees,  Eastern,  work  for 
in   North   Carolina,  241-245. 


270 


INDEX. 


Cheyenne  Indians,  under  care 
of  Friends  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  172  ff.,  175, 
183,  186;  aided  by  Friends, 
203. 

Cheyenne  wars,   162. 

Chickasaw  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,   94,    171. 

Chippewa  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,   94. 

Choctaw  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94 ;  in  west,  visited 
by  Friends,  148 ;  aided  by 
Friends,   171. 

Christian  Endeavor  Society,  of 
California  Yearly  Meeting, 
aids  work  for  Alaska  In- 
dians, 252  note. 

Church,  work  of  for  Indians, 
7  ff. ;  statistics  of  missions 
in   1914,   13. 

Cimarron    river,    181. 

Civil  disputes,  between  whites 
and  Indians  regulated  under 
Quaker  regime,   55. 

Civil  War,  effect  of  on  Friends' 
Indian    mission    in    Kansas, 

157- 

Clark,  Benjamin,  92  note. 

Clear  Creek,  Indians  at  aided 
by  Friends,    104,    105. 

Clendenon,    Robert,    loi. 

Cleveland,  President  Grover, 
198. 

Clinton,  John,  works  among 
western  Indians,  205,  214. 

Clinton,   Modoc  Indian,   210. 

Coale,  Josiah,  relations  of  with 
Indians  from  Virginia  to 
New  England,  23-24,  41-42, 
260. 

Coates,  Isaac,  92  note. 

Coffin,  Dr.  William  V.  at 
Forest  Grove  Indian  School, 
186  and  note;  visits  Alaska 
Indians,  249   note. 

Coffin,  William  G.,  Indian  Su- 
perintendent under  Presi- 
dent Lincoln,    163. 


Coffin,  William  H.,  aids  In- 
dian mission  in  Kansas,  154, 

Coggeshall,  Frank,   144  note. 

Cold  Spring,  N,  Y.,  Friends' 
school  for  Indians  at,  98 
note,  99. 

Colonies,  land  policy  of  vari- 
ous,  affecting  Indians,  4, 

Columbus,  Christopher,  land- 
ing on  San  Salvador,  10. 

Comanche  Indians,  under  care 
of  Friends  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  172  ff.,  175, 
176,    182, 

Compton,  Henry,  Bishop  of 
London,  advises  purchase  of 
Indian  lands,  48. 

Congregationalists,  early  mis- 
sions of  among  the  Indians, 

II-I3- 

Connecticut,  Thomas  Story 
preaches  to  Indian  woman 
in,  28, 

Connett,  Dr,  James  E.,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  249 
note, 

Coope,    Benjamin,    104   note. 

Cooper,    Griffith   M.,    118   note. 

Cooper,  James,  92  note. 

Copeland,  John,  at  Martha's 
Vineyard,  41  ;  beaten  by 
white  settlers  and  befriended 
by  Indians,  42. 

Cope,  Marmaduke  C,  visits 
western  Indians,  174-175, 
181  note. 

Coppock,  Benjamin  S.,  Super- 
intendent of  Chilocco  In- 
dian School,  216  note;  Prin- 
cipal of  White's  Institute, 
Indiana,  235  ff. ;  article  by, 
256  note. 

Corn  Planter,  Seneca  Chief, 
asks  help  of  Friends,  92 ; 
village  of,  96-97. 

Coronado,  Spanish  explorer  in 
South-west,   10. 

Corporation  for  the  Propaga- 
tion of  the  Gospel  among  the 


INDEX. 


271 


Indians  of  New  England, 
II. 

Cory,  Adin  T.,  115  note;  work 
of  among  Onondaga  Indians 
of  New  York,  117,  118  note. 

Cotter,  Nicholas,  works  among 
western   Indians,  206. 

Cotton,  John,  missionary  to 
the  Indians,  11. 

Cox,  Bertha,  works  among 
Alaska  Indians,  257  note. 

Cox,  Wilson  H.  and  Lucy, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
257  note. 

Creek  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94 ;  in  west,  visited 
by  Friends,  148 ;  aided  by 
Friends,    171. 

Crew,  Mary,    144  note. 

Criticism,  of  Friends'  Indian 
mission  in  Kansas,  by  com- 
mittee of  Indiana  Yearly 
Meeting,    155. 

Cruz,  Juan  de  la,  Spanish  mis- 
sionary to  Indians,   10. 

Damascus,  Ohio,  Associated 
Executive  Committee  of 
Friends  on  Indian  Affairs 
organized  at,   170. 

Danforth,  Samuel,  his  work 
with  John  Eliot  among  the 
Indians,    11. 

Darlington,  Brinton,    172  note, 

174. 

Dartmouth  College  and  the 
education  of  Indian  youth,  8. 

Davis,  Amos,  216  note. 

Davis,  Jackson,  Indian  Agent 
in  Maine,   113. 

Dean,  John,   115. 

Death  of  Friends  at  hands  of 
Indians,  cited  as  exceptions 
to  the  rule  of  the  preserva- 
tion of  Friends :  three  in 
Massachusetts,  73 ;  two  in 
Georgia,  73 ;  case  of  Ben- 
jamin Gilbert  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, 76-77. 


Deering,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Delaware  Indians,  pushed  west- 
ward, 32-33 ;  lands  of  pur- 
chased, 49 ;  fierce  in  war, 
83 ;  aided  by  Friends,  94, 
132,  137;  visited  by  Friends, 
148;  recall  kindness  of  Wil- 
liam  Penn,    148. 

Dennis,  Philip,  does  mission- 
ary work  among  Indians 
near    Fort    Wayne,    Indiana, 

134  ff. 
Denny,    John,    and    wife,    144 

note. 
Descalona,     Spanish     mission- 
ary to  Indians,   10. 
Devonshire      House,      London, 

materials  on  Quaker  history 

in,  vi,  261  note,  265. 
Dewees,  Aaron  P.  and  Eunice, 

100   note. 
Dewees,  Watson  W.,  article  on 

"  The     Walking     Purchase," 

SI. 

Dickenson,  James,  35. 

Dillon,  Josiah,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,   249   note. 

Dillon,  Moses,  134  note. 

Domestic  arts  among  Indian 
women  and  girls,  of  eastern 
states,  95,  101-105,  108,  116, 
117,  126-128;  of  western 
states,  135,  140,  145,  151, 
194,  236-237,  239;  of  North 
Carolina   243. 

Douglas  Island,  Alaska,  work 
of  Friends  among  Indians 
of,  246  ff. 

Douglass,  Cornelius  and  Phebe, 
144   note. 

Drinker,    Henry,   92    note. 

Dudley,  John  H.,  visits  west- 
ern  Indians,   190. 

Dutch,  at  New  Amsterdam,  op- 
pose sale  of  liquor  to  In- 
dians,  7. 

Dymond,  Essay  on  War  by, 
makes   incomplete    statement 


272 


INDEX. 


as    to    number    of    Friends 
killed  in  Indian  wars,  72. 

Earle,   Edward,    181    note. 

Earlham  College,  Indian  girls 
educated    at,    186,    216,    238. 

East  New  Jersey,  Quaker  In- 
dian policy  in,  45. 

Easton,  John,  Deputy-Gover- 
nor of  Rhode  Island,  goes 
unarmed  to  King  Philip's 
camp,    61. 

Easton,  Nicholas,  Governor  of 
Rhode  Island,  55. 

Easton,   treaty   of,   46,    78. 

Edmundson,  William,  preserved 
from  harm  in  hostile  Indian 
country,   77  note. 

Edwards,  Charles  H.,  killed 
while  attempting  to  protect 
Alaska  Indians  from  illegal 
importation  of  liquor,  249- 
250. 

Eel  River  Indians,  aid  by 
Friends,     135. 

Eliot,  John,  and  the  Indians, 
10,    II,   12. 

Elkinton,  Joseph  (1859-),  ar- 
ticle on  Tunesassa  work  by, 
no;  interest  of  in  Indian 
work,   259   note. 

Elkinton,  Joseph  (i  796-1 868), 
work  of  at  Tunesassa,  98 
and  note,  99  ;  founds  "  Abo- 
riginal Agricultural  Society," 
102. 

Elkinton,  Joseph  S.  (1830- 
1905),  collection  of  manu- 
scripts prepared  by,  no; 
interest  of  in  Indian  work, 
259  note. 

Elkinton,  Mary  Nutt,  work  of 
at    Tunesassa,    98-99. 

Ellicott,  Elias,  134  note. 

Ellicott,   George,    134. 

Elliott,  Franklin,  works  among 
western  Indians,  203,  204. 

Elliott,  John,  90  note ;  92  note. 

Emlen,   James,   34 ;    92   note. 

England,  early  land  policy  of, 


with  reference  to  Indians, 
3,  5 ;  colonies  of,  oppose 
sale  of  liquor  and  firearms 
to  Indians,  7-8. 

English  Friends,  uphold  peace 
policy  of  Philadelphia  Yearly 
Meeting,  66-67 ;  funds  for 
Indian  work  provided  by, 
118  note;  disposition  of 
large  fund  donated  by,  139- 
140  note;  desire  Christian 
instruction  of  Indians,  145- 
146;  Robert  and  Sarah  Lind- 
sey,  visit  Friends'  Indian 
mission  in  Kansas,  152  note; 
Stanley  Pumphrey  visits 
western  Indians,  176-177; 
Isaac  Sharp  visits  western 
Indians,  209 ;  Henry  Stan- 
ley Newman  and  Mary  Anna 
Newman  visit  western  In- 
dians, 209-210;  Harriet 
Green  visits  Oklahoma  mis- 
sions, 223 ;  summary  of  aid 
given  by  to  Indian  work, 
260-261,  See  also  London 
Yearly  Meeting. 

Episcopal  missionaries,  aid 
Santee    Sioux    Indians,    188. 

Eskimauan  Indians,  of  Alaska, 
work  of  Friends  among,  245, 
253-256. 

Expenditure  of  Orthodox 
Friends  for  the  Indians  in 
1879,  178. 

Faithful  William,  Modoc  In- 
dian, 210. 

Farquhar,   Allan,    133   note. 

Female  Manual  Labor  School, 
maintained  at  Cattaraugus, 
N.  Y.,  by  Liberal  Friends, 
126  ff. 

Field  matrons,  among  Indians, 
194,    197-198. 

Fiske,  John,  historian,  merely 
paraphrases  Parkman's  crit- 
icism of  Quaker  Indian 
policy,  79. 

Five  Medals,  Indian  Chief,  134. 


INDEX. 


273 


Five  Years  Meeting,  adopts 
work  of  Associated  Execu- 
tive  Committee,   224-225. 

Forest  Grove  Indian  School, 
186. 

Forster,  Josiah,  member  of  Ab- 
origines Protection  Society, 
England,  261   note. 

Forster,  William,  member  of 
Aborigines  Protection  So- 
ciety,   England,    261    note. 

Fort  Niagara,  English  officers 
at  release  Friends  captured 
by   Indians,   yd. 

Fort  Wayne,  Indiana,  Friends' 
Indian  mission  near,  i34jEf. ; 
broken  up  by  war  of  1812, 
137- 

Fothergill,  Samuel,  favors 
peace  policy  with  Indians, 
dj,  260. 
Fox,  George,  advises  Friends 
in  America  to  preach  the 
Gospel  to  the  natives,  19, 
22-2Z  ;  preaches  to  Indians 
during  American  journey, 
20-21;  in  Maryland,  20;  at 
Shelter  Island,  20 ;  in  the 
Carolinas,  20-21 ;  notices 
little  religious  progress 
among  Indians,  36 ;  refer- 
ence   to,    260,    2(i2. 

France,  early  land  policy  of, 
with  reference  to  Indians,  3  ; 
reser\fation  policy  in  Canada, 
5 ;  tries  to  prohibit  sale  of 
liquor  to  Indians,  7 ;  en- 
courages missionary  effort 
among    Indians,    9. 

Franciscan  fathers  and  the  In- 
dians, 9  ff. 

Frazier,  Charles  W.,  works 
among  western  Indians,  213, 
216  note. 

Frazier,  Thomas,  141  note. 

French  and  Indian  War,  effect 
of  on  Quaker  peace  policy, 
66  ff. ;  reference  to,  260. 

French,   explorers   and   settlers 


destroy  many  Indians,  3 ; 
missionaries  among  Indians, 
10. 

French,  Thomas  and  Esther, 
144  note. 

Friendly  Association,  efforts  of 
to  maintain  peace  with  In- 
dians, 67-69. 

Friends,  Liberal,  labors  of, 
among  New  York  Indians, 
1 1 8-1 3 1  ;  under  Grant's  Peace 
Policy,  187-199;  Indian 
work  of  more  circumscribed 
in   later  years,    198   note. 

Frye  John   and    Myra   E.,   209. 

Frye,  Myra  Esther,  Kickapoo 
Indian  girl,  215   note. 

Furnas,  Robert,   141  note. 

Gardner,  Anna  Bell,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  251 
note. 

Gardner,  William  and  Pene- 
lope,   144   note. 

Garfield,  President  James  A., 
241. 

Garner  Dr.  I.  D.,  Maryville, 
Tennessee,    241. 

Garrett,  John  B.,  accompanies 
Thomas  Wistar  on  visit  to 
western   Indians,    164. 

Garrett,  Philip  C,  member  of 
Board  of  Indian  Commis- 
sioners, 169  note;  various 
activities  of  in  behalf  of  In- 
dians, 259. 

Geary,  James  V.  and  Eva,  work 
among  Alaska  Indians,  257 
note. 

Genesanguhta  (Old  Town),  N. 
Y.,  work  of  Philadelphia 
Friends   at,   96-97. 

Genessee  Yearly  Meeting  (Lib- 
eral), work  of  for  New 
York  Indians,  it8  note,  119 
ff. ;  cooperates  in  work  for 
western   Indians,    165. 

George,   William   L.,   216   note. 

Georgia,  two  Friends  killed  by 
Indians  in,  73. 


274 


INDEX. 


Germans,    as    early    settlers    in 

Pennsylvania,   32,   66. 
Germantown,  Pennsylvania, 

Friends'     records     preserved 

at,  264. 
Gibson,  Isaac  T.,  172  note,  i75 

note,   179. 
Gilbert,   Benjamin,   and   family 

taken  captive  by  Indians,  "](>- 

77- 

Gill,  Roger,  35. 

Gillingham,  T.  T.,  Indian 
Agent  under  Grant's  peace 
policy,   190  note. 

Glover,  Richard,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,    257    note. 

Goddard,  Charles  W.,  216  note. 

Goddard,  Pliny  Earle,  works 
among  Hupa  Indians,  258 
note. 

Gooden,  William  T.  and  Liz- 
zie, work  among  Alaska  In- 
dians,  257   note. 

Gordon,   Jennie,    181    note. 

Grand  River  Monthly  Meeting, 
among   Indians,   set  up,   205. 

Grand  River  Quarterly  Meet- 
ing organized,  212. 

Grant,  Ulysses  S.,  15;  peace 
policy  of,  162  ff.;  confer- 
ences of  Friends  with,  167; 
announces  peace  policy,  168; 
comments  on  success  of 
peace  policy,  170;  peace 
policy  of  repudiated  by 
Hayes  administration,  184— 
185,  196,  198;  peace  policy 
of,  a  success,  198-199;  peace 
policy  of  mentioned,  261, 
262. 

Greane,   David,   134  note. 

Great  Nehama  Agency,  under 
care  of  Friends  during 
Grant's  peace  policy,  189  ff., 
196. 

Greene,  Albert  L.,  Indian 
Agent  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,   189  ff. 

Green,  Harriet,  English  Friend, 


visits  Oklahoma  missions, 
223,  261. 

Green,   Robert,    139   note. 

Greenville,  Ohio,  Indian  treaty 
at,  89. 

Gregory,   William,   96   note. 

Greist,  Jesse  W.,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note. 

Gua-na-ea,  an  Indian  woman, 
addresses  women  Friends, 
126. 

Guilford  College,  North  Caro- 
lina, Friends'  records  pre- 
served at,  264. 

Gummere,  Amelia  Mott,  v ; 
proposed  new  edition  of 
Woolman's  writings  by,  32 
note ;  part  of  Quakers  in 
American  Colonies  written 
by,  85. 

Gurney,  S.,  Jun.,  member  of 
Aborigines  Protection  So- 
ciety,  England,  261   note. 

Hadden,   Solomon,   142  note. 

Hadley,  Eli,   144  note. 

Hadley,  Jeremiah  A.  and  wife, 
144   note. 

Hadley,  John,   172  note. 

Hadley,  J.  Perry  and  Martha, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
249  note. 

Hadley,  Martha  E.,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  257 
note. 

Hadley,  Mary  J.,  144  note, 

Hadley,  Simon,  142  note,  144 
note. 

Hadley,   William,    141    note. 

Haines,  Franklin,  visits  west- 
ern Indians,   190. 

Haines,  Zebedee,  interest  of  in 
Indian  work,  259   note. 

Hall,  John,  works  among  west- 
ern Indians,  210. 

Hall,  John  W.,  216  note. 

Hall,  Julia,  works  among  west- 
ern Indians,  210. 

Hall,  Rachel  P.,   144  note. 


INDEX. 


275 


Hallowell,  Benjamin,  leader  of 
Indian  work  among  Liberal 
Friends,  visits  western  In- 
dians,   190   and  note. 

Hanna  Charles  A,,  historian, 
his  criticism  of  Quaker  In- 
dian   policy     examined,     81- 

83. 

Hansen,  Sibyl  J.,  works  among 
Alaska  Indians,  249  note. 

Hanson,  John,  family  of  taken 
captive    by    Indians,    73. 

Hare,  Rhoda  M.,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,    257    note. 

Harnden,  Elmer,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,    257    note. 

Harrison,  President  Benjamin, 
259. 

Harrison,  Thomas,  92  note. 

Harrison,  William  Henry,  de- 
feats Indians  at  Tippecanoe, 
136. 

Hartley,  George  N.  and  L. 
Ella,  Superintendents  of  Ok- 
lahoma missions,  211,  220- 
225, 

Hartshorne,  William,  90  note, 
92   note. 

Harvard  College,  and  the  edu- 
cation of  Indian  youth,  8. 

Harvey,   Agatha,    141    note. 

Harvey  Amos,  92  note. 

Harvey,  Ann,    144   note. 

Harvey,  Caleb,  141  note,  144 
note. 

Harvey,  Henry,  139  note,  141 
note,   142   note,   144  note. 

Harvey,  Isaac,  saves  Indian 
woman  in  Ohio  from  execu- 
tion on  charge  of  witch- 
craft, 139  note;  mentioned, 
141  note. 

Harvey,  Jesse  and  Elizabeth, 
144  note. 

Harvey,  Mary  H.,  144  note, 
154. 

Harvey   Mary  J.,    144   note. 

Harvey,  Rebecca,    144  note. 

Harvey,  Simon,    139  note. 


Harvey,  Simon  D.,  154,  144 
note. 

Harvey,  Thomas,    144  note. 

Harvey,  William  F.  and  Sarah* 
144  note. 

Hatfield,  Absalom  and  Ruth, 
IIS    note. 

Haverford  College,  Pennsyl- 
vania, Friends'  records  pre- 
served  at,  265. 

Haworth,  James  M.,  172  note, 
173  and  note,  175,  182. 

Haworth  William  P.  and  Abi- 
gail  C,   212,  225—229. 

Hayes,  President  Rutherford 
B.,  does  not  cooperate  with 
Friends  in  Indian  work, 
184  ff.,   196,   198. 

Heald,   Nathan    134  note. 

Healy,  Christopher,  journeys 
of   among   Indians,   259  note. 

Hesper  Academy,  Kansas,  249. 

Heston,  Zebulon,  visits  west- 
ern Indiana,  33-34. 

Hill,  Charles,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note,   196. 

Hill,  Mary  E.,   144  note. 

Hillside  Indian  Mission,  see 
Skiatook. 

Hoag,  Enoch,  of  Iowa,  as  Su- 
perintendent of  Central  Su- 
perintendency  under  Presi- 
dent Grant,  171  ff. ;  danger- 
ous journey  of  among  In- 
dians,   181-182. 

Hoag,  Joseph  D.,   181   note. 

Hobbs,  Barnabas  C,  manages 
work  of  Friends  among 
Eastern    Cherokees,    241  ff. 

Hobbs,  Wilson  and  Zelinda, 
144  note. 

Hodgkin,  Dr.  Thomas,  mem- 
ber of  Aborigines  Protection 
Society,    England,    261    note. 

Ho-di-wi-yus-doh,  Seneca  In- 
dian name  for  "  Society  of 
Friends,"    130. 

Hodson,  Robert  W.,  216  note. 


276 


INDEX. 


Holder,  Christopher,  at  Mar- 
tha's Vineyard,  41. 

Holland  Land  Company,  land 
purchased  of  at  Tunesassa 
by  Friends,  98, 

Home  Missions  Council,  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee 
cooperates    with,    228-229. 

Hominy,     Indian     Mission     at, 

22T. 

Hopewell  (Opequan),  Va.,  In- 
dian lands  at,  occupied  by 
Friends,    51-52, 

Hopkins,  Gerard  T.,  134; 
journal  of,   161   note. 

Horniday,    Eleanor,    144    note. 

Horniday,    William,    144    note. 

Hough,  Zeri  and  Miriam,  144 
note. 

Howell,   Samuel,  92  note. 

Howland,  Thomas,   112  note. 

Hubbard,  Jeremiah,  181  note; 
works  among  western  In- 
dians, 203  and  note,  205  ff., 
218,  245. 

Hunnicutt,  Anna,  works  among 
Alaska     Indians,     251     note, 

254- 
Hunicutt,  Martha,  works  among 

Alaska   Indians,    257    note. 
Hunt,  John,  of  Darby,  92  note. 
Hunt,    John,    of    Evesham,    92 

note. 
Hunt,    John,    of    London,    dy, 

260. 
Hussey,  Maria,   144  note. 
Hussey,      Samuel     F.,     Indian 

Agent  in   Maine,    113. 

Illinois  Yearly  Meeting  (Lib- 
eral), cooperates  in  Grant's 
peace   policy,    191. 

Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  (prior 
to  division  of  1828),  organ- 
izes and  appoints  first  In- 
dian Committee,  141  and 
note ;  aids  Indians  of  Ohio, 
141    and  note. 

Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  (Lib- 
eral branch   after    1828)    co- 


operates in  work  for  west- 
ern  Indians,    165. 

Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  (Or- 
thodox branch  after  1828), 
aids  mission  in  Kansas,  142 
ff. ;  contribution  to  Kansas 
mission,  146  note;  receives 
Shawnee  fund,  158;  cooper- 
ates in  Grant's  peace  policy, 
166  ff.;  women  Friends  of 
support  mission  among  Otoe 
Indians,    220—221. 

Indian  reservations,  see  Res- 
ervations,   Indian. 

Indian  Rights  Association, 
work  of   Friends  in,  257. 

Indians,  statistics  of  popula- 
tion of,  I ;  territorial  posses- 
sions of,  I  ;  causes  of  de- 
crease in  population,  2 ;  de- 
frauded in  land  purchases, 
4 ;  land  and  reservation  pol- 
icy affecting,  3-6 ;  recent 
policy  of  the  United  States 
affecting,  6-7 ;  college  edu- 
cation of,  8 ;  school  educa- 
tion of  by  United  States,  8- 
9 ;  missions  of  various 
churches  among,  9  ff. ;  re- 
moval of  to  reservations,  12; 
early  preaching  of  Friends 
to,  19  ff- ;  pushed  westward, 
32-33 ;  practical  dealings  of 
early  Friends  with,  38  ff. ; 
lands  of  purchased  by 
Friends,  43-53  ;  sale  of  rum 
to  discontinued  by  Friends, 
53-54 ;  general  trade  with 
regulated  in  Pennsylvania, 
54-55  y  adjustment  of  civil 
disputes  with,  55 ;  enslave- 
ment of,  attitude  of  Friends 
toward,  56-58;  peaceful  re- 
lations of  with  early  Friends, 
60  ff. ;  some  Friends  arm  to 
protect  Indians,  69-70 ;  spare 
Friends  in  time  of  war,  72- 
77 ;  aided  by  Friends'  work 
at  Tunesassa,  89  ff. ;  various 
tribes    of    aided    by     Phila- 


INDEX. 


277 


delphia  Friends,  94 ;  manner 
of  life  in  western  New  York, 
1806  and  1816,  loo-ioi ; 
progress  of  by  1866,  102; 
aided  by  New  England 
Friends,  111-114;  aided  by 
New  York  Friends,  114- 
117;  of  New  York  aicied 
by  Liberal  Friends,  118- 
127;  progress  of,  127  £f.;  ex- 
press gratitude  to  Friends, 
130-131  ')  of  the  west  aided 
by  Friends,  132  £f.;  take  sad 
leave  of  Friends  in  Ohio, 
141-142;  pay  part  expense 
of  orphan  school,  156-158; 
during  Grant's  peace  policy, 
162  ft'.;  life  of  as  seen  by 
Friends,  190— 191  ;  Friends' 
missions  among  in  Oklaho- 
ma, 201  ft.;  membership  of 
among  Friends,  212-213; 
as  Christian  workers,  216- 
218;  attend  White's  Insti- 
tutes in  Indiana  and  Iowa, 
234-241  ;  as  members  among 
Friends,  240 ;  of  North  Car- 
olina aided  by  Friends,  241— 
245  ;  as  members  among 
Friends,  248 ;  remarkable 
progress  of  in  Alaska,  251, 
255-256;  summary  of 

Friends'   work   for,   262. 
Indian  Territory,  formation  of, 

5. 

Industrial  arts  among  Indians 
in,  97,  100-105,  108,  113, 
^37,  138,  194,  243.  See  also 
Agriculture,    Domestic    Arts. 

Inward  Light,  see  Light  With- 
in, 

Iowa  Indian  Mission,  201,  213, 
222,    228—229. 

Iowa  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  189  ff.,  195,  197; 
Friends'  Monthly  Meeting 
organized  among,  212,  213. 
See  also  Iowa  Indian  Mis- 
sion. 

19 


Iowa  Yearly  Meeting,  aids 
western  Indians,  146,  166— 
167. 

Ireland,  Friends  of  make  do- 
nation for  Indian  work,  139, 
260. 

Iroquois  Indians,  of  New  York, 
claims  of  to  lands  in  Penn- 
sylvania, 48  ;  confirm  the  in- 
famous "  Walking  Pur- 
chase," 50;  Albany  Council 
of  1754,  50;  aided  by  Phila- 
delphia Yearly  Meeting,  89 
ft.;  in  Ohio,  137.  See  also 
Six   Nations. 

Jackson,  Arizona,  Wyandot  In- 
dian girl,  educated  at  Earl- 
ham    College,   216. 

Jackson,   Dr.    Sheldon,   253. 

Jackson,    Halliday,    97,    100. 

Jackson,  Hannah,  96  note;  104 
note. 

Jackson,  Lydia,  Indian  scholar 
at  Tunesassa,  essay  of,  102— 
103. 

Jackson,  Samuel  A.  and  Lula, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
249  note. 

Janney,  Asa  M.,  Indian  Agent 
during  Grant's  peace  policy, 
188  ff. 

Janney,  Israel,   134  note. 

Janney,  Samuel  M.,  as  Super- 
intendent of  Northern  Su- 
perintedency  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  187  ff.;  sums 
up  Indian  situation  and  pro- 
poses methods,  189-190;  sum- 
mary of  work  as  Superin- 
tendent, 193-194;  sugges- 
tions  by,    197. 

Jay,  Allen,  takes  active  part 
in  Indian  work,  225,  230 
note. 

Jemison,  Thomas,   Indian,    103. 

Jenks,   Rebecca,    144   note. 

Jennings,   Samuel,   35. 

Jesuit  fathers  and  the  Indians, 
9ff. 


278 


INDEX. 


Jogues,  Father,  Catholic  mis- 
sionary  martyr,    lo. 

Johnson,  Alfred,   144  note. 

Johnson,  Anthony,  92  note. 

Jones,  David,  144  note. 

Jones,  Hiram  W.,  172  note. 

Jones,  Rufus  M.,  his  Quakers 
in  the  American  Colonies, 
85. 

Jones,  Stephen,  113  note. 

Kake  Indians,  work  of  Friends 
for,  249  ff. 

Kansas  City,  Friends'  Indian 
mission  established  near, 
142  ff.;  description  of  mis- 
sion in  1850,   150-151. 

Kansas,  early  Friends  of,  take 
active  part  in  Indian  work, 
154,   156. 

Kansas-Nebraska  Act,  effect  of 
on  Friends'  Indian  mission 
in  Kansas,   153-154. 

Kansas  (or  Kaw)  Indians,  vis- 
ited by  Friends,  148; 
Friends'  mission  school 
among,  163  and  note;  under 
Friends'  care  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  172  ff.,  179; 
aided  by   Friends,   203. 

Kansas,  portion  of  as  part  of 
Indian  Territory,  5  ;  "  bleed- 
ing," as  experienced  by 
Friends,   153, 

Kansas  State  Record,  179. 

Kansas  Yearly  Meeting  (Or- 
thodox), given  charge  of 
mission  stations,  228 ;  work 
of  among  Alaska  Indians, 
245  ff. 

Kaw  Indians,  see  Kansas  In- 
dians. 

Kelsey,  W.  Irving,  mentioned 
in  Preface,  v. 

Kent,  Mahlon  B.,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note. 

"  Kent,"  ship  in  which  early 
Friends  came  to  Delaware 
River,  45. 


Kickapoo  Indian  Mission,  201, 

214,  222,  223,  225. 
Kickapoo    Indians,    visited    by 

Friends,  148 ;  under  Friends' 
care  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  172  ff.  See  also 
Kickapoo    Indian    Mission. 

Kiko,  a  Christian  Indian,  joins 
Friends,    146. 

Kimber,  Mary  S.,  mentioned  in 
Preface,  v. 

King,  Grandma,  aged  Indian 
woman,  gives  reminiscences, 
206. 

King  Philip's  War  (1675- 
1676),  2,  11;  and  Indian 
slavery,  56-57;  Quaker  peace 
efforts   during,    61—62. 

Kiowa  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,    172  ff.,    176,    182. 

Kirk,   Caleb,    133   note. 

Kirk,  Dr.  Charles  W.,  at  Wy- 
andot mission,  183  and  note; 
Superintendent  of  Oklahoma 
missions,   21 1-2 19. 

Kirk,    Rachel,    183    note,    213, 

215,  225. 

Kivalina,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Knowles,  William,   112  note. 

Koluschan  Indians,  work  of 
Friends   for,   245—253. 

Kotzebue,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Kotzebue  Sound,  Alaska,  mis- 
sionary effort  of  Friends  in 
vicinity   of,  253-256. 

Kupreanoff  Island,  Alaska, 
work  of  Friends  for  Indians 
of,  249  ff. 

Kyst,  Moses,  Modoc  Indian, 
210. 

Lake  Mohonk,  N.  Y.,  Indian 
Conferences,  see  Mohonk, 
Lake,   Indian   Conferences. 

Lalement,  Father,  Catholic 
missionary   martyr,    10. 

Land  policy,  of  various  nations 


INDEX. 


279 


settling  America,  3-4;  of 
Friends  in  dealing  with  In- 
dians, 43-53;  of  Friends  in 
Pennsylvania,  47-51;  Walk- 
ing Purchase,  49. 

Lang,  John  D.,  on  Indian 
Committee  of  New  England 
Yearly  Meeting,  113  note; 
visits  western  Indians,  147- 
150;  member  of  Board  of 
Indian  Commissioners,  169 
note. 

Lawrence,  Jennie,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,   249   note. 

Lawrence,  Mida,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,   249  note. 

Lawrie,  Gawen,  deputy-gover- 
nor of  East  New  Jersey,  45. 

Leiter,  Frances  E.,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  249 
and  note,  250,  251   note. 

Lewis,    Captain,    138,    141. 

Lewis,   Edith,    144  note. 

Lewistown,  Ohio,  Indians  near 
aided  by  Friends,  137  ff. ; 
Indians  of  remove  to  Kan- 
sas,  141. 

Lightfoot,  Thomas,  Indian 
Agent  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,   189  ff. 

Lightner,  Isaiah,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note,   196. 

Light  Within,  doctrine  of 
preached  to  Indians  by  John 
Richardson,  2(i-2y,  28,  29. 

Lincoln,  President  Abraham, 
appoints  a  Friend  as  Indian 
Superintendent,    163. 

Lindley,  Jacob,  90  note. 

Lindsey,  Robert  and  Sarah, 
English  Friends,  visit 
Friends'  Indian  mission  in 
Kansas,  152  note. 

Literary  Societies,  formed 
among  Indians,    178. 

Little  Turtle,  Miami  Chief,  133, 

134- 
Logan,  James,  reports  remark- 


able inerview  with  Indians, 
64. 

London,  England,  Friends'  rec- 
ords preserved  at,  265. 

London  Yearly  Meeting,  urges 
peace  with  Indians,  dj,  260 ; 
encourages  Canadian  Friends 
to  help  Indians,  260-261 
note.  See  also  English 
Friends. 

Lone  Wolf,  Indian  Chief,  173 
note. 

Long  Island,  John  Taylor 
preaches  to  Indians  of,  24. 

Love,  John,   133  note. 

Lunt,   Lina   B.,   213,   215,   229. 

M'Kim,  John,  133  note. 
Macy,  John  M.,  144  note. 
Mardock,      John      F.,      works 

among  western  Indians,  205, 

213,  222,   229. 
Mardock,  Mary,  229. 
Marital    bonds,    observance    of 

among  Indians,    106. 
Markham,   William,   carries   to 

America  William  Penn's  first 

message  to  Indians,  25  note. 
Martha's       Vineyard,       Josiah 

Coale    preaches    to    Indians 

of,    2^^ ;    Christopher    Holder 

and    John    Copeland    among 

Indians  of,  23  note. 
Martin,     Calva     and     Frankie, 

work  among  Alaska  Indians, 

251    note. 
Maryland,  George  Fox  preaches 

to  Indians  in,  20. 
Maryville,    Tennessee,    Friends 

of     interested      in      Eastern 

Cherokees,  241. 
Maryville,    Tennessee,    Normal 

Institute,   186,  242. 
Matthews,    Thomas,    133    note. 
Mayhew,  Thomas,  and  the  In- 
dians, 10,  II. 
Mendenhall,  Richard,  144  note. 
Mendenhall,   Tamar   Kirk,   and 

eldest  son  killed  by   Indians 

in  Georgia,  yz- 


280 


INDEX. 


Menominee  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,    164, 

Methodists,  mission  work  of 
among  Indians,   155. 

Miami       Indians,       aided       by 

Friends,  94.  i33,  US- 
Miami    Monthly    Meeting,    In- 
diana,   receives    Indian    into 
membership,    146. 

Mifflin,  Warner,  92  note. 

Miles,  Benjamin  and  Elizabeth 
B.,  labors  of  among  Indians, 
238  ff. 

Miles,  B.  W.,  172  note. 

Miles,  John  D.,   172  note,   186. 

Miles,  Laban  J.,  172  note,  186, 
226. 

Miller,  Guion,  activities  of  on 
behalf  of  Indians,  259. 

Miller,   Mark,   92  note. 

Miller,  Thomas,   172  note. 

Mills,  Alpheus,  visits  Alaska 
Indians,   251    note. 

Mills,  Jay,  works  among  Alaska 
Indians,  251    note. 

Mills,  Seth,  visits  Alaska  In- 
dians, 251  note. 

Minthorn,  Dr.  H.  J.,  in  charge 
of  Forest  Grove  Indian 
school,  186;  Superintendent 
•of  Chilocco  Indian  school, 
216   note. 

Missouri  Indians,  under  care 
of  Friends  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  195,  197. 

Modoc,  Frank,  Friends'  min- 
ister, 206 ;  conversion,  la- 
bors, and  death  of,  208-209. 

Modoc  Indian  mission,  228. 

Modoc  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  203,  205  ff.,  217. 
See  also  Modoc  Indian  Mis- 
sion. 

Modoc  Preparative  Meeting 
established,  205. 

Mohonk,  Lake,  Indian  Confer- 
ences, 257-258. 

Monroe,  President  James,  out- 
lines reservation  policy,  5. 


Montauk  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  117. 

Montgomery,  George,  men- 
tioned in   Preface,  vi. 

Mooney,  James,  on  value  of 
Indian  missions,   13-14. 

Moon,  Silas  and  Anna,  work 
among  Alaska  Indians,  246 
ff.,  249  note. 

Moore,  Joseph,  90  note. 

Morris,  Joel  H.,  172  note,  179. 

Morris,  Lizzie,  works  among 
Alaska  Indians,  251  note. 

Morrison,  Mary  E.,  241  note. 

Mt.  Pleasant,  John,  Indian,  103. 

Munsee  Indians,  preserve  mem- 
ory of  William  Penn,  148. 

Myers,  Albert  Cook,  v ;  new 
edition  of  William  Penn"s 
Works  in  preparation  by,  86. 

Myers,  Eli  and  Minnie,  work 
among  Alaska  Indians,  257 
note. 

Napoleon,  and  the  Louisiana 
Purchase,  46. 

Narraganset  Indians  aided  by 
Friends,    112  note. 

Navajo  war,   162. 

Neal,   William,  216  note. 

New  Amsterdam,  Dutch  colony 
of,  opposes  sale  of  liquor  to 
Indians,  7. 

Newberg,  Oregon,  Friends  of 
aid  Alaska  Indians,  249. 

Newby,  Elias,  144  note. 

New  England,  policy  of  pur- 
chasing Indian  lands  in,  4 ; 
Indian  slavery  in,   56-57. 

New  England  Yearly  Meeting, 
early  efforts  of  for  eastern 
Indians,  iiiff, ;  sends  me- 
morial to  government,  112 
and  note ;  work  of  for  Pe- 
nobscot and  Passamaquoddy 
Indians,  112—114;  aids  west- 
ern Indians,  146 ;  renewed 
interest  of  in  western  In- 
dians, 147  ff. ;  cooperates  in 
work    for    western    Indians, 


INDEX. 


281 


i66  flF. ;  Friends  of  support 
work  among  western  In- 
dians,   213,    223. 

New  Garden,  N,  C,  Friends  of, 
seek  to  reimburse  Indians 
for  lands,  52 ;  maintain  tes- 
timony on  peace,  T2, 

New  Jersey  Association  for 
Helping   the   Indians,   46-47. 

New  Jersey,  policy  of  purchas- 
ing Indian  lands  in,  4,  44- 
47 ;  last  lands  of  Indians 
purchased  in,  46 ;  no  Indian 
war  in,  47 ;  sale  of  rum  to 
Indians  in,  53-54;  adjust- 
ment of  civil  disputes  be- 
tween whites  and  Indians  in, 

55. 

Newlin,  M.  H,,   172  note. 

Newman,  Henry  Stanley  and 
Mary  Anna,  English  Friends, 
visit  western  Indians,  209— 
210  ;  describe  meetings  among 
Indians,  217-219;  reference 
to,  261. 

Newsome,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Ben- 
jamin, work  among  Alaska 
Indians,   257  note. 

New  York,  N.  Y.,  Friends' 
records  preserved   at,   265. 

New  York,  policy  of  purchas- 
ing Indian  lands,  4. 

New  York  state,  George  Fox 
preaches  to  Indians  at  Shel- 
ter Island,  20 ;  John  Taylor 
preaches  to  Indians  of  Long 
Island,  24 ;  Philadelphia 
Friends  visit  Indians  of,  34  ; 
Indians  of  aided  by  Friends, 
89-109,  ii4fT. ;  many  In- 
dians of  move  to  west,   117. 

New  York  Yearly  Meeting 
(prior  to  division  of  1828), 
aids  New  York  Indians,  96, 
114  ff.;  Indian  Committee  of 
appointed  in  1795,  114;  work 
of  begun  among  Stock- 
bridges  in  1807,  115;  work 
of     among     various     tribes, 


New  York  Yearly  Meeting 
(Liberal  branch  after  1828), 
continues  work  among  New 
York  Indians,  119  ff.;  coop- 
erates in  Grant's  peace  pol- 
icy,   165,    187  ff. 

New  York  Yearly  Meeting 
(Orthodox  branch  after 
1828),  aids  western  Indians, 
146,  147  ff,;  cooperates  in 
Grant's  peace  policy,  166  ff.; 
aids  Oklahoma  missions, 
205  ff. 

Nicholls,  Smith,  converted  In- 
dian, 218. 

Nicholson,  Dr.  William,  Gen- 
eral Agent  of  Associated 
Executive  Committee,  172; 
Superintendent  of  Central 
Superintendency,  172  note. 

Nixon,    Sarah    Ann,    144    note. 

Noatuk,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

North  Carolina  Yearly  Meet- 
ing, Friends  of  and  Indian 
lands,  52-53;  Friends  of  in 
relation  to  peace  policy,  70— 
"72 ;  Friends  of  oppose  com- 
pulsory military  service,  71 ; 
Friends  of  aid  Eastern 
Cherokees,    241  ff. 

Northern  California  Indian  As- 
sociation, 258. 

Northern  Superintendency, 
work  of  Liberal  Friends  for 
Indians  of,  187  ff. 

Oak  Grove  Seminary,  Vassal- 
boro,  Maine,  attended  by 
Frank  Modoc,  209. 

Ogden,  David  A.,  forms  Ogden 
Land    Company,    119   note. 

Ogden  Land  Company,  efforts 
of  Friends  to  protect  Indians 
against    claims    of,    1 19-125. 

Ohio  Yearly  Meeting  (prior  to 
division  of  1828),  organiza- 
tion of  and  appointment  of 
first    Indian    Committee,    138 


282 


INDEX. 


and  note ;  work  of  among 
Indians   of   Ohio,    138-140. 

Ohio  Yearly  Meeting  (Liberal 
branch  after  1828),  cooper- 
ates in  work  for  western  In- 
dians,  165,   187  ff. 

Ohio  Yearly  Meeting  (Ortho- 
dox branch  after  1828),  aids 
mission  near  Kansas  City, 
140-159;  cooperates  in  work 
for   western    Indians,    166  ff. 

Oklahoma,  development  of  from 
Indian  Territory,  5. 

Oklahoma  Indian  Missions, 
maintained  by  Friends,  201 
ff. ;  distribution  of  early  ef- 
fort among,  204  ff. ;  admin- 
istration of  by  C.  W.  Kirk, 
211— 2ig;  administration  of 
by  G.  N.  Hartley,  220-225 ; 
administration  of  by  W.  P. 
Haworth,  225-229 ;  recent 
developments  in,  229-232 ; 
mentioned,    262. 

Oksik,  Alaska,  work  of  Friends 
for  Indians  at,  254. 

Old  Town  (Genesanguhta),  N. 
Y.,  work  of  Philadelphia 
Friends  at,  96—97, 

Olive,   Thomas,   35. 

Olmos,  Father,  Catholic  mis- 
sionary to  Indians,   10. 

Omaha  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,    188  ff.,   193,    195,    197. 

Oneida  Indians  aided  by 
Friends,  95-96,  115  and  note, 
116,    164. 

Onondaga  Indians  aided  by 
Friends,  115  and  note,  116; 
show  marked  progress,  117, 
118. 

Ordinance  of  1787,  clause  of 
affecting   Indians,   4. 

Oregon,  Indians  of  aided  by 
Friends,    209. 

Oregon  Yearly  Meeting, 
Friends  of  aid  Alaska  In- 
dians,  249  ff. 

Orphan  asylum,  established  for 


Indian  children  as  memorial 
to  Friends,   131  note. 
Osage     Indian     Mission,     201, 

203,    22^-22']. 

Osage  Indians,  visited  by 
Friends,  148;  under  Friends' 
care  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  172  ff.,  175,  186; 
aided  by  Friends,  203.  See 
also    Osage   Indian    Mission. 

Oskaloosa,  Iowa,  Friends'  rec- 
ords preserved  at,  265. 

Otoe  Indian  Mission,  201,  220. 

Otoe  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  189  ff.,  195,  197.  See 
also   Otoe  Indian  mission. 

Ottawa  Indian  Mission,  204  ff., 
228. 

Ottawa  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94,  152.  See  also 
Ottawa   Indian   Mission, 

Ottawa  Preparative  Meeting 
established,   205. 

Outland,  D,  Amos  and  Rhoda 
M.,  Missionaries  among  Otoe 
Indians,  220-221, 

Ozbun,  Jonathan,  works  among 
western    Indians,    203  ff. 

Pacific  Railroad,  building  of 
disturbs  Indians,  162. 

Padilla,  Spanish  missionary  to 
Indians,    10, 

Painter,  Dr.  Edward,  Indian 
Agent  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,   188  ff. 

Parker,  Elisha  and  wife,  144 
note. 

Parker,  Ely  Samuel,  annouces 
President  Grant's  peace  pol- 
icy,   168. 

Parkman,  Francis,  criticism  of 
Quaker  Indian  policy  by,  39, 
79-81, 

Parrish,  John,  visits  western 
Indians,  33-34 ;  among  In- 
dians in  western  New  York, 
34 ;  mentioned,  90  note,  92 
note. 


INDEX. 


283 


Parvin,  Benjamin,  30. 

Passamaquoddy  Indians,  aided 
by  New  England  Friends, 
112-114. 

Pawnee  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  181,  1 88;  life  of  as 
seen  by  Friends,  191 ;  prog- 
ress of,  195,  197. 

Paxon,  John,   139  note. 

Paxson,  Oliver,  92  note. 

Paxton  Riot,  The,  69-70;  re- 
ferred to  by  Charles  A. 
Hanna  in  his  history,  81-83. 

Peace  Policy,  Grant's,  see 
Grant,  Ulysses  S. 

Peace,  The  Quaker,  60-83 ;  in 
Rhode  Island,  60—62 ;  in 
Pennsylvania,  62-70 ;  broken 
by  French  and  Indian  war, 
66  ff. ;  in  the  Carolinas,  70- 
y2 ;  preservation  of  Friends 
as  result  of,  72--^-j ;  criti- 
cisms of,   79-83. 

Pearson,  Charles  E.,  216  note. 

Pearson,  Marcus  L.,  principal 
of  White's  Institute,  Indi- 
ana, 238. 

Pearson,  Moses,  and  wife,  144 
note. 

Pease,  Joseph,  member  of  Ab- 
origines Protection  Society, 
England,  261   note. 

Peebles,  Annis,  works  among 
Alaska  Indians,  248,  249 
no^e. 

Pelham  Quarterly  Meeting, 
Canada,  aids  Indians,  261 
note. 

Pemberton,  Israel,  75. 

Pennsylvania,  policy  of  pur- 
chasing Indian  lands  in) — ; 
William  Penn's  desire  for 
the  religious  welfare  of  In- 
dians in,  24-26 ;  John  Rich- 
ardson preaches  to  Indians 
of,  25-27 ;  Thomas  Chalkley 
preaches  to  Indians  of,  28 ; 
John  Woolman  preaches  to 
Indians  at  Wyalusing  in,  29- 


32 ;  Quaker  land  policy  in, 
47-51;  sale  of  rum  to  In- 
dians in,  53-54;  general 
trade  with  Indians  regulated 
in,  54-55 ;  adjustment  of 
civil  disputes  between  whites 
and  Indians  in,  55  ;  Indian 
slavery  in,  57-58;  peace  pol- 
icy in,  62-67 ;  sufferings  of 
Friends  during  Indian  war 
in,    74-77. 

Penn,  Thomas,  bears  odium  of 
"  The  Walking  Purchase," 
49. 

Penn,  William,  first  message  of 
to  Indians,  24-25  ;  wishes  re- 
ligious meetings  provided 
for  Indians  and  negroes,  25  ; 
and  John  Richardson  at  a 
meeting  with  Indians,  25- 
26 ;  ideals  of  put  into  prac- 
tice, 38-59  passim ;  land  pol- 
icy of,  43  ff. ;  and  sale  of 
rum  to  Indians,  53-54;  reg- 
ulates general  trade  with  In- 
dians of  Pennsylvania,  54- 
55 ;  and  the  Quaker  peace 
policy  in  Pennsylvania,  62— 
67;  at  treaty  of  1701,  yj ', 
tribute  to  by  Philadelphia 
Yearly  Meeting,  79;  his 
peace  policy  criticized  by 
some  historians,  79-83 ;  re- 
membered by  Indians,  91, 
148—149  and  note;  peace 
policy  of  and  Grant's  peace 
policy,  162;  treaties  of  re- 
ferred to,  165. 

Penney,  Norman,  vi,  yj  note, 
261   note. 

Penobscot  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,    112-114. 

Pequot  War,  2. 

Perquimmans,  North  Carolina 
Yearly  Meeting  held  at,  70- 
71. 

Philadelphia  Indian  Aid  Asso- 
ciation, 171,  213;  aids  In- 
dian children  in  White's  In- 
stitute, Indiana,  238. 


284 


INDEX. 


Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania, 
Friends'  records  preserved 
at,  265. 

Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting 
(prior  to  division  of  1828), 
members  of  visit  Indians  of 
Ohio,  33-34;  members  of 
hold  impressive  meeting  with 
Indians  of  western  New 
York,  34-35;  discourages 
sale  of  rum  to  Indians,  54 ; 
opposes  Indian  slavery,  57- 
58;  attitude  of  during  French 
and  Indian  War,  66-70 ;  not 
indifferent  to  sufferings 
caused  by  Indian  war,  68 ; 
expression  of  on  Indian  pol- 
icy, 78-79 ;  begins  work 
among  Iroquois  Indians  of 
Western  New  York,  89-97  > 
appoints  first  Indian  Com- 
mittee, 92  ;  Indian  Commit- 
tee of  issues  appeal,  93-94 ; 
aids  Oneida  Indians,  95-96 ; 
turns  to  Senecas,  96  ff. ;  urges 
other  Yearly  Meetings  to 
aid   Indians,    iii. 

Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting 
(Liberal  branch  after  1828), 
aids  New  York  Indians,  119 
ff. ;  cooperates  in  work  for 
western  Indians,   165,   194. 

Philadelphia  Yearly  Meeting 
(Orthodox  branch  after 
1828),  continues  work  at 
Tunesassa,  N.  Y.,  99-109; 
aids  western  Indians,  146; 
Friends  of,  aid  Oneida  In- 
dians in  Wisconsin,  164;  del- 
egation from  visits  Presi- 
dent Grant,  167;  Friends  of 
become  members  of  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee, 
cooperating  in  Grant's  peace 
policy,    171  ff. 

Phillips,  John,    100. 

Pickeral,    Henry,    141    note. 

Pickering,   John   H.,    172   note. 

Pickering,  Timothy,  Secretary 
of   State,    recommends    work 


of  Friends  to  the  Six  Na- 
tions, 95. 

Pierce,  John,  92  note,  97. 

Plymouth  Colony,  Josiah  Coale 
preaches  to  Indians  near,  23- 
24. 

Pool,  John,  144  note. 

Potawatomi  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94,  133 ;  visited  by 
Friends,  148;  under  Friends' 
care  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,   172  ff.,   179. 

Potter,  Abraham,  72. 

Pound,  Asa,   139  note. 

Powell,  Joseph,  visits  western 
Indians,    190. 

Presbyterian  Church,  mission- 
aries of  aid  Santee  Sioux 
Indians,  188;  takes  over 
Friends'  missions  in  Alaska, 
252-253. 

Preservation  of  Friends  from 
Indian    depredations,    72-77. 

Princeton  College,  and  Indian 
education,   8. 

Progress  of  Indians,  in  civil- 
ized life,  loo-ioi,  102,  117— 
118,  127-128  and  note,  194 
ff. ;  in  Alaska,  251,  255-256. 
See  also  Agriculture,  Domes- 
tic arts.  Industrial  arts.  Re- 
ligious work.  Schools. 

Providence,  R.  I.,  attitude  of 
toward  Indian  slavery,  57; 
Friends'  records  preserved 
at,   266. 

Pugh,  Achilles,  visits  western 
Indians,   174,   181   note. 

Pumphrey,  Stanley,  visits  west- 
ern Indians,  176,  181-182, 
261. 

Quapaw  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  172  ff.,  185;  aided  by 
Friends,  203,  205  ff. ;  Friends 
cease  work  among,  228. 

Queen   Anne's   War,   72-73. 

Quiggan,   Robert  K.,  216  note. 


INDEX. 


285 


Rale,  Father,  Catholic  mission- 
ary martyr,   lo, 

Reckitt,    William,    35. 

Reindeer,  herds  of  established 
among  Eskimos  by  govern- 
ment, 256  and  note. 

Religious  work  among  Indians, 
of  eastern  states,  19-37,  97, 
103-104,  109,  113,  129;  of 
the  west,  141-146,  150-151, 
^77,  179  ff-,  190,  206  ff.,  210, 
216—218,  220—221,  227,  2^1, 
237,  240 ;  of  North  Carolina, 
243-244 ;  of  Alaska,  247,  248, 
253-254,  256  ;  in  general,  262. 

Replogle,  Charles  and  Mary, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
249  note,  254,  257  note. 

Replogle,  Clinton  S.  and  Nora, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
257   note. 

Reservation  plan  in  Canada 
and  the  United   States,   5. 

Reservations,  Indian,  policy  of, 
5  ;  number  of,  6. 

Rhoads,  James  E.,  visits  west- 
ern Indians,  174-175,  181 
note ;  death  of  and  resolu- 
tions concerning,  219. 

Rhode  Island,  adjustment  of 
civil  disputes  between  whites 
and  Indians  in,  55  ;  Quaker 
attitude  toward  Indian  slav- 
ery in,  56-57;  the  Quaker 
peace  policy  in,  60-62. 

Richards,  Jonathan,  172  note, 
175. 

Richardson,  John,  religious  ef- 
forts of  among  Indians,  25- 
27,   260. 

Richland  Monthly  Meeting,  76. 

Richmond,  Indiana,  Friends' 
records  preserved  at,   266. 

Roberts,  B.  Rush,  member  of 
Board  of  Indian  Commis- 
sioners,   169   note. 

Roberts,  C.  H.,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note. 

Roberts,  Reuben  L.,   172  note. 


Robin  Hood,  Modoc  Indian, 
210. 

Robinson,    William,    35. 

Rodgers,   Cyrus,    144   note. 

Rodman,  Samuel,   112  note. 

Rotch,   William,  Jr.,    112   note. 

Rowland,  Josiah,  96  note. 

Rum,  sale  of  to  Indians,  dis- 
continued by  Friends  at  early 
period,  53. 

Russians,  destroy  many  In- 
dians in  Alaska,  3  ;  establish 
Indian  schools,  7. 

Sac  and  Fox  Indians,  visited 
by  Friends,  148;  under  care 
of  Friends  during  Grant's 
peace  policy,  172  ff.,  185,  189, 

19s,   197. 

Sakarissa,  Tuscarora  Chief, 
asks  help  of  Friends,  93. 

Samms,  Robert  and  Carrie, 
work  of  among  Alaska  In- 
dians, 254. 

Sandusky,  Ohio,  Friends  visit 
Indians  near,   90. 

Sansom,  Joseph,  92  note. 

Santee  Sioux  Indians,  under 
care  of  Friends  during 
Grant's  peace  policy,  188  ff., 
193,  194,  195,  196. 

Savery,  William,  attends  im- 
pressive meeting  among  In- 
dians of  Western  New  York, 
34-35 ;  muses  on  lack  of 
religious  progress  among 
Oneida  Indians,  36  ;  proposes 
more  active  service  for  In- 
dians, 90—91  ;  on  first  In- 
dian Committee  of  Philadel- 
phia Yearly  Meeting.  92  note. 

Scarfaced  Charley,  Modoc  In- 
dian, 210. 

Scattergood,  George  J.,  account 
of  work  at  Tunesassa  writ- 
ten by,  no;  interest  of  in 
Indian    work,   259   note. 

Schools,  Indian,  in  New  York 
State,  95,  98-109,  116,  118, 
126-127;    in   Ohio,    139-140; 


286 


INDEX. 


among  Indians  west  of  Miss- 
issippi River,  144-159,  175- 
178,  185-186,  189,  192,  193- 
194,  195,  203,  210-21 1,  213, 
215-216,  22^—226,  231;  in 
Indiana,  Iowa  and  North 
Carolina,  235-245  ;  in  Alaska, 
247-248, 

Scotch  Irish,  as  early  settlers 
in  Pennsylvania,  32,  66; 
threaten  Friends  in  Paxton 
Riot,  69. 

Scotton,    Robert,    99,    loi— 102. 

Searing,  Charles  H.,  Indian 
Agent  under  Grant's  peace 
policy,  190  note. 

Selawik,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Sells,  Cato,  United  States  Com- 
missioner of  Indian  Affairs, 
"  Declaration  of  Policy  "  by 
(1917),   6-7. 

Seminole  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,   171. 

Seneca  Indian  Mission,  201, 
203,  218.  See  also  Seneca 
Indians. 

Seneca  Indians,  mentioned  by 
Thomas  Chalkley,  28 ;  of 
New  York  aided  by  Friends, 
96-109,  1 1 8-13 1  ;  in  west, 
visited  by  Friends,  148 ; 
aided  by  Friends,  152.  See 
also   Seneca   Indian  mission. 

Seneca  Preparative  Meeting 
established,  205. 

Severalty  Act  of  1887,  progress 
in  administration  of,  6. 

Shackamaxon,  treaty  of,  39, 
63  ;  long  remembered  by  In- 
dians,  148. 

Sharp,  Isaac,  English  Friend, 
visits  western  Indians,  209, 
261. 

Sharpless,  Isaac,  v ;  on  Quaker 
policy  of  buying  Indian 
lands,  50-51  ;  historical  works 
by,  85,  87. 

Sharpless,  Joshua,  visits  New 
York  Indians,  97. 


Shawnee  Indian  Mission,  201, 
203,  204  ff.  See  also  Big 
Jim   Indian   Mission. 

Shawnee  Indians,  in  Pennsyl- 
vania preached  to  by  Thomas 
Chalkley,  28 ;  declare  Friends 
were  spared  by  Indians  in 
time  of  war,  77;  aided  by 
Friends,  94;  in  Ohio  aided, 
137-140;  in  Kansas  aided, 
140  ff.;  description  of  mis- 
sion among  in  1850,  150-151  ; 
of  Kansas  join  Cherokees  of 
Indian  Territory,  158;  branch 
of  under  Friends'  care  dur- 
ing Grant's  peace  policy,  172 
ff.  See  also  Shawnee  Indian 
Mission. 

Shawnee  Monthly  ,  Meeting, 
among  Indians,  established, 
205. 

Shearman,  Abm.,  Jr.,  112  note. 

Shelter  Island,  meeting  of 
George  Fox  with  the  Indians 
on,  20. 

Sherman,  General  W.  T.,  ad- 
vises peaceful  negotiations 
with   Indians,    165. 

Sherman,  John  F.,  216  note. 

Sherman,    Mary,    213. 

Shillitoe,  Thomas,  among  the 
Indians  of  New  York  and 
Canada,   115  note. 

Shinnecock  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,   117. 

Shungnak,  Alaska,  work  of 
Friends  for  Indians  at,  254. 

Sickles,  Leslie,  works  among 
Alaska  Indians,  257  note. 

Silvister,  Joseph,  appointed  by 
George  Fox  to  read  Scrip- 
tures to  Indians,  20. 

Simmons,  Henry,  Jr.,  96  note ; 

97. 

Sioux  wars,  162;  see  also 
Santee  Sioux. 

Sitka,  Alaska,  254. 

Six  Nations,  of  New  York, 
visited  by  Friends  of  Phila- 
delphia Yearly  Meeting,  34 ; 


INDEX. 


287 


aided  by  Philadelphia  Yearly 
Meeting,  89  ff.  See  also  Iro- 
quois  Indians. 

Skiatook  (Hillside)  Friends' 
Indian  Mission  215,  225-226, 
228. 

Slaves,  Indian,  and  attitude  of 
Friends,    56-58,    61-62. 

Sloan,  Joseph,  92  note. 

Smedley,  Walter,  visits  west- 
ern  Indians,   231-232. 

Smiley,  Albert  K.,  member  of 
Board  of  Indian  Commis- 
sioners, 169  note;  founds 
Lake  Mohonk  Indian  Con- 
ference,  257-258. 

Smiley,  Alfred  H.,  258, 

Smiley,   Daniel,  258. 

Smith,  Harlan  and  Melinda, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
251  note. 

Smith,  Jane,  141  note. 

Smith,  John,  92  note. 

Smith,  Matilda,   144  note. 

South  Carolina,  law  against 
selling  rum  to  Indians  in,  54; 
and   Indian   slavery,   58. 

South  Dakota,  Indian  reserva- 
tions in,  6. 

South  Kingston,  R.  I.,  Indian 
slaves  in,  56. 

Spain,  early  land  policy  of  with 
reference  to  Indians,  3  ;  and 
the   Indian  missions,   7,   9. 

Spencer,   John,   Jr.,   92   note. 

Spray,  Henry  W.,  Superintend- 
ent of  Indian  school,  244. 

Spray,    Samuel   J.,    163   note. 

Stacey,    Robert,    35. 

Standing,    Alfred    J.,    176-177. 

Stanley,  James,  156-157,  144 
note,   163   note,   172  note. 

Stanley,  Jesse,  216  note. 

Stanley,  Rachel,   157,  144  note. 

Stanley,  Thomas  and  Mary, 
144  note,    163   note. 

Stanley,  Thomas  H.,  181  note, 
205,  226. 

Stanton,  Ann,   144  note. 

Stanton,  James,    144  note. 


Stanton,  Mary  H.,   144  note. 

Stanton,  William,   141  note. 

Stapler,  John,  92  note. 

Steere,  Abby,    181    note. 

Steere,  Florence  Trueblood, 
mentioned   in   Preface,  v. 

Steere,  Jonathan  M.,  v;  visits 
western    Indians,    231—232. 

Stephenson,   Sarah,  35. 

Stewart,   John,    144   note. 

Stockbridge  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  95,  115  and  note, 
116;  a  woman  of,  in  west, 
visited  by  Friends,  148; 
aided  by   Friends,    152. 

Story,  Thomas,  preaches  to  In- 
dians of  Virginia  and  Con- 
necticut, 27-28 ;  travels  in 
New  England,  72-73,  260. 

Stratton,  Elizabeth,  works 
among  Alaska  Indians,  257 
note. 

Stubbs,  Mahlon,  163  note,  172 
note,   179. 

Stubbs,  Rachel,   163  note. 

Sullivan,  General,  raid  of  into 
New  York  brings  Indian  re- 
prisals,   76, 

Swaine,  Joel,   g6-g7. 

Swarthmore,  Pennsylvania, 

Friends'  records  preserved 
at,   266. 

Swett,  Benjamin,  92  note. 

Sycamore  Creek,  funeral  serv- 
ice in  valley  of,  207. 

Sycamore,  missionary  work  dis- 
continued at,  228. 

Taber,  Ashugak,  Alaska  Indian 
girl,  257  note. 

Taber,  Augustus  and  Anna  F., 
active  in  Northern  Califor- 
nia Indian  Association,  258 
note. 

Taber,  Cornelia,  active  in 
Northern  California  Indian 
Association,    258    note. 

Tarhe,  Wyandot  Chief,   132. 

Tatum,  Lawrie,  172  note,  174, 
178,   181   note. 


288 


INDEX. 


Taylor,  Jacob,  96  note,  104 
note,   105,   139  note/ 

Taylor,  John,  preaching  of 
among  Indians  of  Long  Is- 
land, 24,  260. 

Taylor,  Samuel,  Jr.,  visits 
western   Indians,    147-150. 

Teas,  Edward  Y.,  144  note. 

Tebbetts,  Charles  E.,  General 
Secretary  of  American 
Friends'  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions,  251. 

Tecumseh,  agitation  of  among 
western   Indians,    136. 

Tedyuskung,  Indian  Chief,  re- 
fuses to  negotiate  treaty  un- 
less Friends  are  present,  78. 

Temperance,  advanced  among 
Indians,  26,  106,  133-134, 
136,  138,  178,  183,  248. 

Tenskwatawn,  Shawnee 
"Prophet,"    136. 

Test,  Elizabeth,  teaches  school 
among  Iowa  Indians,  213; 
works  among  Kickapoo  In- 
dians, 214-215. 

Thayer,  Davis  W.  and  wife, 
144  note. 

Thayer,  Elizabeth  M.,  144  note. 

Thomas,  Allen  C,  History  of 
Friends   in  America   by,    87. 

Thomas,  Dana  and  Otha,  work 
among  Alaska  Indians,  257 
note. 

Thomas,  Evan,   133  note. 

Thomas,   Francis  W.,  225. 

Thomas,  Jonathan,  96  note. 

Thomas,  Philip  E.,  labors  of 
for  Indians,  124-125  and 
note. 

Thorndike,  Henry  and  Anna 
M.,   144  note. 

Thurston,  Thomas,  journey  of 
with  Josiah  Coale  from  Vir- 
ginia to  Long  Island,  23,  41- 
42. 

Timbered  Hills  Monthly  Meet- 
ing, 205,  245. 
Tippecanoe,   battle   of,    136. 


Tohee,  Chief  Dave,  a  loyal 
member   of   Friends,   229. 

Tonawanda  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  105-106,  117,  123 
and   note. 

Townsend,  Alpheus,  works 
among  western  Indians,  206. 

Townsend,  Martha,  144  note, 
163   note. 

Trade,  between  whites  and  In- 
dians regulated  under  Quaker 
regime,    54-55- 

Treaties,  Indian,  attended  by 
Friends,    77-78,    90-91. 

Trimble,   Joseph,   92   note. 

Troth,  Jacob  M.,  Indian  Agent 
during  Grant's  peace  policy, 
188  ff. 

Tunesassa,  preliminaries  of 
Friends'  work  at,  89-97  '>  site 
located,  97-98 ;  work  sus- 
pended at  for  five  years,  99 ; 
boarding  school  established 
at,  99  ;  new  building  erected 
at,  100;  material  progress  of 
Indians  at,  100-103;  religious 
progress,  103-104;  other 
work  in  vicinity  of,  104-106; 
expense  of  work  at,  107; 
modern  dairying  at,  107; 
recent  developments  at,  109; 
mentioned,  262. 

Turner,  Thomas,  35. 

Tuscarora  Indians,  a  message 
for  them  from  George  Fox, 
21—22;  reimbursed  for  lands 
at   Hopewell,  Va.,   52. 

Tuttle,  Asa  C.  and  Emeline  H., 
labor  among  western  Indians, 
181  note,  202  and  note,  204- 
205,  208,  228,  235. 

Twining,   Stephen,   104. 

Unthank,  Dr.  John,  gift  of  for 
Indian  work,   146  note. 

United  States,  land  policy  of, 
affecting  Indians,  4-7  ;  reser- 
vation policy,  5  ;  recent  al- 
lotments of  land  to  Indians, 
6;  present  policy   (1917),  6- 


INDEX. 


289 


7 ;  aids  college  education  of 
Indians,  8;  provides  schools 
for  Indians,  8-9  ;  aids  relig- 
ious denominations  to  main- 
tain mission  schools,  8 ;  sta- 
tistics of  Indian  schools  of, 
8 ;  and  claims  of  Ogden  Land 
Co.,  1 19-125;  removes  Ohio 
Indians  to  west,  140-141  ; 
peace  policy  of  under  Presi- 
dent Grant,  162  ff.;  estab- 
lishes schools  under  care  of 
Friends  among  western  In- 
dians, 175  ff . ;  extends  school 
system  among  Indians,  226 ; 
provides  funds  for  schools 
under  care  of  Friends,  234- 

245- 
Upsall,  Nicholas,  treated  kindly 
by  Indians,  40-41. 

Valentine,  Thomazine,  portrays 
progress  of  Indians  in  1866, 
102. 

Van  Buren,  President  Martin, 
and  the  claims  of  the  Ogden 
Land  Co.,   121. 

Vaux,  George  Jr.,  chairman  of 
Board  of  Indian  Commis- 
sioners, 169  note,  259. 

Vestal,  Eli  and  Jemima,  144 
note. 

Virginia,  Thomas  Story 
preaches  to  Indians  of,  2"]— 
28 ;  Friends  of,  and  Indian 
lands,   51-52. 

Voltaire,  idealization  of  Quaker 
Indian   policy   by,    39. 

Vore,  Jacob,  Indian  Agent  un- 
der Grant's  peace  policy,  190 
note. 

Walker,  Benjamin,  134  note. 
Walker,  Enoch,  96  note. 
Walking  Purchase,  the  iniquity 

of,    49-50 ;     referred    to    by 

Parkman,  81. 
Walton,    Alfred    and    Priscilla, 


sufferings     of     at     Kivalina, 

Alaska,  255. 
Walton,  Joseph    S.,    129-130. 
Wapakoneta,  Ohio,  Indian  mis- 
sion      at       maintained       by 

Friends,    137-140. 
Warden,    Edward,    58. 
Washington,  George,  President 

of  United  States,  89,  94. 
Watson,  Eliza,  215. 
Watson,    Eva,    teaches    school 

among   Indians,   215-216. 
Watson,  John  M.,  works  among 

western    Indians,    205,    207, 

215. 
Wea  Indians,  aided  by  Friends, 

135- 

Webster,  Joseph,  Indian  Agent 
under  Grant's  peace  policy, 
190  note. 

Weekly  Chronicle,  Washing- 
ton, D.  C,  165. 

Weesner,  Elwood,  among  west- 
em  Indians,  181  note;  or- 
ganizes work  among  Indians 
of    Douglas    Island,    Alaska, 

245  ff- 
Wells,    Thomas    and    Hannah, 

144    note,    151    note. 
West,     Benjamin,     idealization 

of  Quaker  Indian  policy  by, 

39. 

West  Branch,  Iowa,  Indian 
school  at,  239,  240. 

Western  Yearly  Meeting,  aids 
western  Indians,  146,  166  ff.; 
aids  Indians  of  North  Caro- 
lina, 241  ff. 

West  New  Jersey,  Quaker  In- 
dian policy  in,  44-47- 

Wetherill,  B.,    175   note. 

Whitacre,    Patience,    141    note. 

White,  Barclay,  Superintendent 
of  Northern  Superintendency 
during  Grant's  peace  policy, 
194  ff.;  closes  his  work,  196; 
suggestions  of,  197. 

White,  Howard,  serves  as  In- 
dian   Agent    during    Grant's 


290 


INDEX. 


peace  policy,  187  flf.;  distri- 
butes annuity  goods  to  Win- 
nebagoes,  190-191  ;  holds 
election  among  Winnebagoes, 
192-193, 

White,  Josiah,  of  Philadelphia, 
founds  institutes  in  Indiana 
and  Iowa,  234. 

White,  Milton  and  Margaret, 
work  among  Alaska  Indians, 
257  note. 

White's  Institute,  of  Indiana, 
186,  234-238. 

White's  Institute,  of  Iowa,  186, 
238-241. 

Whitewing,  Frank,  Wyandot 
Indian   convert,   206-208. 

Wichita  Indians,  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,    172  ff.,    175,    '^n- 

Wickersham,    Caleb,    141    note. 

Widders,  Robert,  35. 

Widdifield,  Timothy,   181   note. 

Wilber,   Thomas,    112   note. 

Willetts,  Charles,   115  note. 

William  and  Mary  College  and 
the  education  of  Indian 
youth,  8. 

Williams,  A.  C,  172  note. 

Williams,  Daniel  A.  and  Hat- 
tie    E.,   22^. 

Williams,  Roger,  benevolent  at- 
titude of  toward  Indians,  4, 
10,   II. 

Willis,  Joel  W.,  and  Elizabeth, 
144  note. 

Wilmington  Yearly  Meeting, 
aids  in  work  for  Alaska  In- 
dians,  252   note. 

Wilson,    Christopher,    (>t,    260. 

Wilson,  John,  133  note. 

Winnebago  Indians,  visited  by 
Friends,  148;  under  care  of 
Friends  during  Grant's  peace 
policy,  187  ff. ;  life  of  as  seen 
by  Friends,  190-191  ;  chiefs 
of  deposed  by  Agent  Howard 
White,  192-193 ;  land  allot- 
ted to,  193;  progress  of,  i95, 
197. 


Winney,  John  and  Lucy,  elders 
of  Seneca  Friends'  meeting, 
217,  218. 

Wistar,  Edward  M.,  v,  164 
note ;  as  Chairman  of  Asso- 
ciated Executive  Committee, 
reads  report  before  Five 
Years  Meeting,  224-225 ; 
visits   Osage   Indians,   227. 

Wistar,  Thomas,  first  Clerk  of 
Philadelphia  Indian  Commit- 
tee, 92  note. 

Wistar,  Thomas,  2d,  work  of 
for  Indians,  164  and  note; 
interview  of  with  President 
Grant,  167;  visits  western 
Indians,    174-175,    181    note. 

Witchcraft,  belief  in  by  In- 
dians,  106,   139  note. 

Woman's  Christian  Temper- 
ance Union,   248. 

Women  Friends,  of  Philadel- 
phia and  Germantown  aid 
Indians,    171,    178-179,    240. 

Women's  National  Indian  As- 
sociation, begins  work  among 
Big  Jim  Band  of  Absentee 
Shawnee  Indians,  221-222. 

Wood,  Carolena  M.,  225. 

Woodard,    John,    163    note. 

Woodard,   Levi,    172   note. 

Woodward,  Dr.  Walter  C, 
General  Secretary  of  Five 
Years    Meeting,    266. 

Woolman,  John,  journey  and 
preaching  of  to  Indians  at 
Wyalusing,  Pennsylvania,  29- 
32 ;  relations  of  with  Morav- 
ian missionary  David  Zeis- 
berger,  30 ;  member  of  New 
Jersey  Association  for  Help- 
ing the  Indians,  47. 

Wooten,  Andrew,   181  note. 

Worth,  Ebenezer,  maintains 
schools    among    Indians,    99- 

Worth,    Isaiah,    181    note. 

Wright,  Francis  A.,  visits 
Alaska   Indians,  249   note. 


INDEX. 


291 


Wright,  Jonathan,    141    note. 

Wright,  Jonathan  (of  Monal- 
len),    133   note. 

Wyandot  Indian  Mission,  Wy- 
andotte, Oklahoma,  201, 
217-218. 

Wyandot  Indians,  aided  by 
Friends,  94,  132-133,  152, 
179,  183,  185,  186.  See 
also  Wyandot  Indian  Mis- 
sion. 


Wyandot  Preparative  Meeting 
established,  205. 

York,  Herbert,  works  among 
Alaska   Indians,   257   note. 

Zane,  Sarah,  bequest  of  for 
Indian   work,    147   note. 

Zeisberger,  David,  Moravian 
missionary  to  Indians,  30. 


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